Spreading or ascending annual, 1-5 dm; lvs lanceolate to lance- ovate, 3-6 cm, serrate; staminate spikes exceeding the lvs; fr hirsute; 2n=16 and multiples. Native of Europe, w. Asia, and n. Afr., escaped or adventive in waste places here and there in our range and s. May-Sept.
Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.