It germinates and grows in fall, becomes dormant in the winter, resumes growth in spring. It flowers and produces seeds in spring or summer, and dies after seed set within a single year.

It also often occurs on dry, open, and often-disturbed areas. While above-average precipitation may increase ventenata abundance, one study found that ventenata seed density increased in the soil seed bank after 3 years of experimentally induced drought.

Animals may disperse seeds farther, but no distances are given. The bent, twisted awns easily catch onto fur, feathers, and clothing, and seeds often disperse along roadways and other travel corridors.

Ventenata grows on open to partially closed sites.

In savannas and woodlands in Oregon, ventenata occurs in open to lightly shaded areas, especially after tree cutting.

Disturbances that reduce vegetation and expose bare soil appear to favor its establishment in some areas. However, it also occurs on undisturbed sites including scablands, Palouse Prairie, unburned western juniper-ponderosa pine woodlands, and dry ponderosa pine-Rocky Mountain Douglas-fir forests.

It may establish after fire from seeds stored on-site in a short-term persistent soil seed bank or from seeds dispersed by animals from off-site sources.

Fire probably kills some ventenata seeds, especially if seedheads have not yet shattered. No heat-, smoke-, or char-cued germination is described.

In Palouse prairie, one researcher recommended fall burning followed by herbicide to control ventenata and increase native species cover, but this recommendation was based on <1 year of data and applies only where native species are fire-adapted. Another study found that fall or spring burning followed by fall herbicide reduced ventenata cover; fall burning alone was also effective where pretreatment cover was high.

Its litter is relatively persistent, and dry ventenata stalks and litter decay more slowly than those of most associated grasses.

Disturbances that may favor its establishment and spread include fire, heavy grazing, animal activity, drought, and flooding.

In forests, fires that reduce canopy cover appear to favor ventenata, so excluding fire may limit its population there. Long-term studies (up to 12 years) found that in Palouse prairie, ventenata abundance increased over time with and without fire, so exclusion may have little effect.

Limited evidence suggests prescribed fire may help reduce ventenata abundance in the short-term only when combined with other control methods.

In some invaded scablands, fine fuel loads were about 50 times higher than in uninvaded communities.