VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Echinochloa crus-galli | Barnyard Grass 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Barnyard grass is readily grazed by livestock in Arizona and West
Virginia, and can be cultivated for hay [27,67].  

Seeds of barnyard grass are eaten by songbirds, waterfowl, and greater
prairie chickens [6,9,59,63,75].  Barnyard grass is an important source
of food and cover for waterfowl in the Sacramento Valley [47].  In the
playa lakes of Texas and New Mexico, meadows dominated by barnyard grass
are important habitat for waterfowl and pheasant [4].


PALATABILITY : 
Barnyard grass produces fair pasture when grazed during early growth
stages but becomes harsh and unpalatable at maturity [68].  It is
palatable to sheep in Minnesota [40].


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
Barnyard grass has fair to poor forage value for livestock [68].  In
Minnesota, toxic levels of nitrate have been reported in barnyard grass
[40].  Nutritional values of sun-cured barnyard grass in the milk stage
are as follows [87]:

_________________________________________United States
Dry matter             %           84.2          100.0
Ash                    %            7.7            9.1
Crude fiber            %           31.0           36.8
Ether extract          %            1.8            2.1
N-free extract         %           34.0           40.4
Protein (N x 6.25)               
 Sheep    dig. coef.*  %           57.0           57.0
 Cattle   dig. prot.*  %            5.9            7.0
 Goats    dig. prot.   %            6.2            7.4
 Horses   dig. prot.   %            6.2            7.4
 Rabbits  dig. prot.   %            6.4            7.6
 Sheep    dig. prot.   %            5.6            6.6
Energy       
 Cattle       DE* Mcal/kg           1.95           2.31
 Sheep        DE  Mcal/kg           1.98           2.35
 Cattle       ME* Mcal/kg           1.60           1.90
 Sheep        ME  Mcal/kg           1.62           1.93
_______________________________________________________
*dig. coef.=protein digestible coefficient
 dig. prot.=digestible protein
 DE=digestible energy
 ME=metabolizable energy


COVER VALUE : 
Barnyard grass cover values are as follows [86]:  
                               
                         UT       WY       ND   

upland game birds       poor     fair     good
waterfowl               poor     fair     good
small nongame birds     fair     fair     good
small mammals           fair     fair     ----


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Barnyard grass has colonized desert riparian and wetland community sites
along the Gila river in Arizona that were supplied by year-round flows
of wastewater.  If wastewater areas are managed on a permanent
year-round basis, habitat rehabilitation and avian colonization may
occur [55].

Barnyard grass can be utilized for quick, temporary erosion control on
coal mine sites in the eastern United States [75].


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
NO-ENTRY


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Generally, seed yields from barnyard grass stands are reduced in 2 to 3
years because of competition with other weeds [43].  In Missouri,
natural seeding of barnyard grass was stimulated by periodic draining
and flooding of a wetland site; a July 1 to September 15 drawdown
produced an excellent stand of barnyard grass which was utilized by
waterfowl [6].  In California, draining barnyard grass fields in the
spring and discing them can benefit stands.  At the Mendota Waterfowl
Management Area, California, this practice has been used to perpetuate
stands of barnyard grass for up to 6 years.
  
Barnyard grass may harbor a virus-like disease of cereals [17].   

Toxicity tests of effluents in water and sediment were conducted using
the two varieties of barnyard grass.  Effluents from a sewage treatment
plant, tannery, textile mill, pulp and paper mill, and coking plant
inhibited germination, chlorophyll synthesis, and growth of
barnyard grass [77,78].

Related categories for Species: Echinochloa crus-galli | Barnyard Grass