Schizachyrium scoparium (Little bluestem)

Hundreds of years ago, the little bluestem grass was one of four widespread grass species that made up the tallgrass prairie that covered much of central North America. It is an incredibly ecologically important grass species spread across many states. Little bluestem is named so for its light blue stems as it actively grows in spring and summer.

 

This grass prefers drier soils and full sun, typically growing 2 to 4 feet tall and forming dense columnar clumps. By autumn it has shifted to coppery hues of red, orange, and gold; it produces fluffy, silvery seed heads that shimmer in the breeze. Little bluestem's fibrous and deep roots help stabilize soil over time, making it an ideal specimen for grasslands, prairie restoration, and erosion management.

 

Native grasses help to improve soil and reduce rain runoff, as their network of roots are constantly dying and regenerating each season, feeding soil microbes and sequestering carbon sometimes several yards below the surface. Lawn grass, by comparison, only has roots that go an inch or two below ground. 

 

Dense plantings of grasses give shelter to birds and small mammals, which also eat the seeds. This grass pairs well in a prairie garden as a companion or backdrop to sun-loving wildflowers such as Rudbeckia hirta, rattlesnake master, wild quinine, largeflower aster, or as a single species spread over a wide area.

 

Adding native grasses to a planting can also help to protect and keep the ground cool for other perennials, in the height of summer by as much as 20 degrees! If planted in nutrient-rich soils, little bluestem will tend to flop over from excessive growth. Likes to be in a community of plants with lots of root competition and lean, poor soils. Does not need to be fertilized.