little bluestem

little bluestem

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

More photos…

Schizachyrium scoparium var. scoparium


Taxonomy

Family:

Poaceae (grass)

 

No Rank:

PACMAD clade

 

Subfamily:

Panicoideae

 

Tribe:

Andropogoneae


Nativity

Native

Status

 

Habitat

Dry to moderate moisture. Prairies, south-facing goat prairies, open woods, pine barrens, dunes, roadsides, railroads, old fields. Well-drained, rocky or sandy soil.

Flowering

Mid-July to mid-October

Height

18 to 36


Identification

This is an erect, medium-height grass reaching 18 to 36 in height at maturity.

The stem (culm) is distinctly wine-red or purplish near the nodes.

The leaves, especially the lower ones, are rough to the touch, and may have scattered, long hairs.

At the top of each culm are several ascending racemes, 1½ to 3 long. Each raceme occurs individually on its own slender stalk.

The spikelets are hairy. The glumes have a twisted awn at the tip about ¼ to ½ inch long.

Unlike most grasses, the stems of little bluestem remain upright in the winter.

 
Similar
Species

 


Range Range Map   Sources: 2, 3, 5, 7.
 
Sightings

Afton State Park

Agassiz Dunes SNA

Bonanza Prairie SNA

Cottonwood River Prairie SNA

Grey Cloud Dunes SNA

Kasota Prairie SNA

Kellogg-Weaver Dunes SNA
Kellogg-Weaver Unit
Weaver Dunes Unit

Lost Valley Prairie SNA

Ordway Prairie

Ottertail Prairie SNA

Rice Lake Savanna SNA

River Terrace Prairie SNA

Rock Ridge Prairie SNA

Staffanson Prairie

Wild River State Park

Zimmerman Prairie


Comments

Little bluestem is often used in prairie restorations.

The “blue” in the name refers to the color of the emerging shoots in the early summer. The “little” in the name is a misnomer—this is not a little plant—but differentiates it from similarly-named big bluestem.


Images  
Clump little bluestem   little bluestem        
               
Inflorescence little bluestem            

Synonyms

 

 
Common
Names

broom

broom beard grass

broom beardgrass

broom bluestem

little blue-stem

little bluestem

prairie beard grass

prairie beardgrass

wiregrass


 

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