Poaceae

Yellow foxtail

Setaria pumila (Poir.) Roem. & Schult.

Family: Poaceae
Genus: Setaria

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Yellow foxtail (Setaria pumila) — FlowerPhoto: Gianni Del Bufalo bygdb, CC BY 4.0, from iNaturalist

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Common names

By language (19)

Arabic: ذيل الثعلب القزم
arz: ذيل الثعلب القزم
Asturian: Cigua
Bambara: Ngoolo
Chinese: 金色狗尾草, 褐毛狗尾草, 硬稃狗尾草
Czech: Bér sivý
dag: Fuukaɣli
Dutch: Geelrode naaldaar, Zeegroene naaldaar
English: Yellow foxtail, Cat-tail millet, Pigeon grass, Yellow bristle grass
Estonian: Vesihaljas kukeleib
Finnish: Sinipantaheinä
French: Sétaire glauque
German: Rote Borstenhirse, Fuchsrote Borstenhirse
hsb: Čerwjeny włosanc
Japanese: キンエノコロ, コツブキンエノコロ
Malayalam: കമ്പിളിപ്പുല്ല്
Slovenian: Sivozeleni muhvič
Swedish: Grå kavelhirs
Welsh: Cibogwellt melyn

Synonyms

Chaetochloa glauca var. purpurea Farw.
Chaetochloa lutescens var. longispica Honda
Panicum flavescens Moench
Panicum glaucum var. elongatum Pers.
Panicum glaucum var. flavescens Elliott
Panicum glaucum var. humifusum Lej.
Panicum glaucum var. laevigatum Torr.
Panicum glaucum var. prostrata Bréb.
Panicum glaucum var. pumilum (Poir.) Asch. & Graebn.
Panicum imberbe var. pumilum (Poir.) Nees
Panicum lutescens f. pumilum Poir.
Panicum luteum Gueldenst.
Panicum pallidifuscum Schumach.
Panicum pumilum Poir.
Panicum rubiginosum Steud.
Pennisetum helvolum R.Br.
Setaria aurea var. penicillata A.Chev.
Setaria aurea var. rubiginosa (Steud.) Peter
Setaria auricoma Link ex Loudon
Setaria boninensis Nakai
Setaria breviglumis St.-Lag.
Setaria dasyura Schlecht.
Setaria erythraeae Mattei
Setaria glauca f. abyssinica Pilg.
Setaria glauca subsp. humifusa Dumort.
Setaria glauca subsp. pallidefusca (Schumach.) B.K.Simon
Setaria glauca subsp. subtesselata Buse
Setaria glauca var. bracteata Bolzon & De Bonis
Setaria glauca var. breviseta Buse
Setaria glauca var. compressa Martrin-Donos
Setaria glauca var. dura (I.C.Chung) I.C.Chung
Setaria glauca var. elongata (Pers.) Raddi
Setaria glauca var. ictura Buse
Setaria glauca var. longiseta Vis.
Setaria glauca var. longispica (Honda) Makino & Nemoto
Setaria glauca var. macrocarpa Hook.f.
Setaria glauca var. minutissima F.M.Bailey
Setaria glauca var. nodiflora Goiran
Setaria glauca var. pallide-fusca (Schumach.) T.Koyama
Setaria glauca var. pallidefusca (Schumach.) T.Koyama

and 24 more.

Flowers

In flower: July to September (from 156 flowering iNaturalist observations worldwide)
Flower colour: white (USDA PLANTS Database)

Characteristics

Growth habit: Graminoid
Lifespan: Annual
In the US and Canada: Canada: introduced, Hawaii: introduced, Lower 48 states: introduced, Pacific Basin: introduced, St. Pierre and Miquelon: introduced

Photos

FlowerPhoto: Gianni Del Bufalo bygdb, CC BY 4.0, from iNaturalist
FlowerPhoto: wilderbombyx, CC0, from iNaturalist
FlowerPhoto: Harry Rose, CC0, from iNaturalist
FlowerPhoto: Harry Rose, CC0, from iNaturalist
Photo: Adrián Pablo Rodríguez Quiroga, CC0, from Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Tom Norton, CC BY 4.0, from iNaturalist
Photo: AnRo0002, CC0, from Wikimedia Commons
Photo: AnRo0002, CC0, from Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Tom Norton, CC BY 4.0, from iNaturalist
Photo: AnRo0002, CC0, from Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Tom Norton, CC BY 4.0, from iNaturalist
Photo: AnRo0002, CC0, from Wikimedia Commons

More in Setaria

Sources: classification, synonyms from World Flora Online Plant List (2026-06, CC0 1.0); common names, popularity from Wikidata (2026-10-26, CC0 1.0); common names, US characteristics from USDA PLANTS Database (2025-05-29, CC0 1.0). About our plant data.