skip to main content

Need ID On A Native Grass

16 years ago

This grass has been growing in this pot for two years now. It was dug up from along a river in southern New Jersey. It is low growing - approximately 10 inches - and clumping. In July it starts to send up three foot long bloom spikes that eventually send out small tufts along the spike. The color of this grass is blue green with pinkish highlights. It is quite an attactive grass. Does anyone know what it is?

{{gwi:1064452}}

Comments (3)

laogooli
16 years ago
Hmm...
Maybe Schizachyrium scoparium (little bluestem), or Andropogon virginicus (broomsedge)?
dirtdevil
Original Author
16 years ago
Thank you laogooli for your thoughts on my grass. I know it is definitely not Andropogon virginicus but it could very well be Schizachyrium scoparium. I Googled the Schiz little bluestem and looked at a lot of the pictures presented. The bloom on my grass is definitely the same but the form and size of mine is somewhat different and I do not remember it turning orange in the fall. But it probably is a little bluestem. Thanks again.
Related Discussions
Native grass ID help....
Q
Comments (2)
Scirpus cyperinus (Marsh Bulrush)
...See More
IDing native grasses
Q
Comments (1)
????? You may want to try to google Poaceae and the state you have in mind or Graminae. There are also herbariums on line and you can see images of collected specimens.
...See More
Help w/ changing 3 acres of native grass/weeds to buffalo grass
Q
Comments (6)
I must not have been very clear. Buffalo grass is a native grass in my area. It is mixed in with other grasses in pastures and prairie throughout the natural landscape. As our lot currently stands, the weeds (mostly tumbleweeds) have taken over any good prairie grass that is there. We are not planting the 3 acres to lawn, we are planting buffalo grass, which is something we can keep maintained, is native and does not need watered. We are planting over 150 trees and shrubs and plan on introducing a variety of planting beds throughout the property with native wildflowers and ornamental grasses. I feel like we are improving our landscape in a very responsible way and am simply asking for help doing this correctly. Our lot is across from a golf course and although it is in the country (our lot backs a pasture for grazing cattle and circle of corn) it does have to have the look of a manicured area. I frankly feel that people in this area are very good at removing invasive, although "native" weeds that cause a nuisance not only in the way the look but in the amount of water they suck from the ground, and therefore taking over the native grasses. People here plant buffalo grass, keep it mowed and don't water it, which is what we would like to do. Thank you all for your help.
...See More
Can someone ID this native grass?
Q
Comments (8)
wouldn't it be easier to pull up a clump and transplant? i don't know for sure but, based on where i see it growing, it doesn't appear to be a plant that needs much pampering. it could also be that it only grows where it wants to grow! i just happened to notice large stands of it behind our office building this morning and took this photo. it appears to be the same species to my untrained eyes and i also find it attractive as it sways in the breeze. these are growing on poor, rocky soil at the edge of the parking lot. full sun and not what i would call moist soil. it may get some water seeping from the edge of the pavement and surface runoff during rain events but, other than that, it is a hot and dry spot. broom sedge would be an appropriate name, rhizo. i remember watching my elderly neighbor gather the stems, shape with a machete-like knife (cutting off the ends with seeds) and then tie the bundle with cordage. she used it like an over-sized wisk broom on her back porch.
...See More
laogooli
16 years ago
I found this in a post regarding identification of little bluestem:

posted by: carol_the_dabbler on 05.22.2007 at 05:27 pm in Native Plants Forum

If you and your hubby like the looks of the broomsedge, and would like something similar to grow along your driveway, you might check into little bluestem. As a couple of people have already mentioned, it looks a whole lot like broomsedge. However, it is more suited to cultivation (for example, several sites mention that when soil fertility increases, little bluestem will thrive, whereas broomsedge will die out).

[...]

Of course, if what you already have turns out to be little bluestem, then transplant away. Here's one site's idea of how to tell the difference in spring/summer: "... go to the base of the plant and look at the shoots. Little Bluestem shoots are flattened and pink in color; Broomsedge shoots are yellowish in color."
Do the shoots look pink? I'm not sure if it's the only grass with pink shoots, but that would make it more likely to be little bluestem. You did mention something about pink...

Sign Up to Comment

Related Stories

GARDENING GUIDES 15 Native Flowers That Feed Native Bees

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

These perennials offer superfood to hundreds of bees and are gorgeous in their own right

GARDENING GUIDES Great Design Plant: Purple Needle Grass, California’s State Grass

By Debbie Ballentine

The long-lived, drought-tolerant Stipa pulchra is as admired for its benefits as for its good looks

SUMMER GARDENING Great Design Plant: Pink Muhly Grass

By Annie Thornton

Bring billowing clouds of pink to your yard with this heat-tolerant, sun-loving ornamental grass

GARDENING GUIDES 10 Top California Native Plants, Trees and Grasses

By Debbie Ballentine

Enjoy a fuss-free, water-wise garden in the Golden State by growing plants naturally in tune with the climate and wildlife

GARDENING GUIDES Great Design Plant: Indian Grass

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

Bring whispers of prairie winds to your garden with this swaying native grass that stands tall all winter

GARDENING FOR BUTTERFLIES 3 Ways Native Plants Make Gardening So Much Better

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

You probably know about the lower maintenance. But native plants' other benefits go far beyond a little less watering and weeding

GRASSES 10 Ways to Use Ornamental Grasses in the Landscape

By Laura Gaskill

These low-maintenance plants can add beauty, texture and privacy to any size garden

GARDENING GUIDES Garden-Friendly Native Alternatives to Overplanted Exotics

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

There are lots of gorgeous, wildlife-friendly native plants ready to make an appearance in your garden

GARDENING GUIDES How to Find the Right Native Plants for Your Yard

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

Find plant maps, sale sites and guides that make going native in the garden easier than ever

NATIVE PLANTS Plant These Fall-Flowering Natives in Early Summer for Pollinator Love

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

These 3 groups of plants will support masses of beneficial insects come autumn

Sponsored

NME Builders LLC

2 Reviews

Industry Leading Kitchen & Bath Remodelers in Franklin County, OH