Allergy Information

This grass genus can become a problem where it is found in volume.

Genus Details

Dog's tail grass is generally found in waste areas and pastures. Sheep are the main forage animals that consume this grass. Dog's tail is a perennial which grows on underground upright stems (rhizomes). Leaves are in two rows on the stem. Dog's tail grass produces abundant pollen in June and July. In southwestern states it can produce pollen April through July. Dog's tail grass gets its name from its wiry stalks, which, when dried, bend to look like a dog's tail waving in the wind.

Pollen Description

Grains are spheroidal to ovoidal, sometimes elliptical. The exine is thin and the surface is granular to finely reticuloid. Poaceae apertures are 1-porate, with the pores usually circular to ovoidal.

Grains are 22-122 micrometers in diameter.

Genus Distribution

The shaded areas on the map indicates where the genus has been observed in the United States.

- Native, observed in a county 

- Introduced, observed in a county 

- Rarely observed