New Mexico State University
College of Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences | ACES
NMSU: Selected Plants of Navajo Rangelands

Selected Plants of Navajo Rangelands

Diné bikéyah Chi’l nooséłígíí Bąąhą́ą́nosin
Take care of our Navajo Rangelands

Foxtail barley

(a.k.a. bobtail barley, squirreltail barley)
Azéé’iilwo’iitsoh
Tufty growth habit of several plants, some with reddish brown seedheads and some with greener seedheads
Russ Kleinman

Foxtail barley is a native grass that looks quite a bit like longleaf squirreltail. In foxtail barley, however, spikelets are borne in sets of three. The middle one is sessile, and the two outer spikelets are on pedicels. Foxtail barley propagates by seed and is extremely tolerant of saline soils. It inhabits both dry and wet areas and can be drought tolerant.

Three spikelets and their long awns
Russ Kleinman
Clumping root system
Russ Kleinman
Tufty growth habit with numerous greenish-yellow spikes
Russ Kleinman, Bill Norris & Denise Friedrick
Greenish-yellow spikelet with feathery appearance
Russ Kleinman, Bill Norris, & Denise Friedrick
Fully opened spikes with awns giving them a brushy appearance
Russ Kleinman & Kelly Kindscher
Scientific Name
Hordeum jubatum
Plant Type
Grass / Grasslike
Growing Season
Cool Season
Habitats
  • Piñon-Juniper Woodland
  • Ponderosa Pine / Mixed Conifer
  • Grasslands
  • Wastelands
  • River valleys
Other Traits
⚠
May injure grazing animals

For definitions, see the glossary.

©2018 NMSU Board of Regents.
Individual photographers retain all rights to their images.
Partially funded by the Western Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program (westernsare.org; 435.797.2257), project EW15-023.
Programs and projects supported by Western SARE are equally open to all people.