Bluestem Andropogon gyrans
Other Common Name(s):
Other plants called Bluestem:
Previously known as:
- Andropogon elliottii
- Phonetic Spelling
- an-dro-POH-gon JY-rans
- Description
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Elliot's Bluestem is a native warm-season perennial bunchgrass found in moist woodlands, sandhills, fields, and disturbed areas in the central and eastern U.S.A. and is found in all areas of NC but primarily in the sandhills and Piedmont. This plant is heat tolerant and it's foliage persists through the winter which provides shelter for insects, quail, and other small mammals. Cattle will graze this grass.
This grass prefers sandy or loam soils in full sun to partial shade from dry to wet sites. It is not often used in the garden and may be difficult to find. Best used in naturalized areas as meadows, along streams or ponds.
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Andropogon
- Species:
- gyrans
- Family:
- Poaceae
- Life Cycle:
- Perennial
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- Central and eastern U.S.A.
- Distribution:
- AL , AR , DC , DE , FL , GA , IL , IN , KY , LA , MD , MO , MS , NC , NJ , OH , OK , PA , SC , TN , TX , VA , WV
- Wildlife Value:
- Members of the genus Andropogon supports Common Wood-Nymph (Cercyonis pegala) larvae which have one brood from late May to October. Adult Common Wood-Nymph butterflies feed on rotting fruit and flower nectar. This plant also supports various Skipper larvae. Provides shelter for field birds, small mammals and insects.
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Native Plant
- Ornamental Grasses and Sedges
- Habit/Form:
- Arching
- Erect
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
- Soil Texture:
- Clay
- Loam (Silt)
- Sand
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Moist
- Occasionally Dry
- Occasionally Wet
- NC Region:
- Coastal
- Mountains
- Piedmont
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Fruit:
- Fruit Type:
- Caryopsis
- Fruit Description:
- The seedhead is a raceme, partially enclosed in a conspicuously enlarged spathe, which turns a rusty color when the plant matures in October-November
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Flowers:
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Spike
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Fall
- Flower Description:
- Grass-like flowers in terminal and axillary panicles September-October
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Leaves:
- Leaf Color:
- Green
- Deciduous Leaf Fall Color:
- Orange
- Leaf Type:
- Simple
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Alternate
- Leaf Shape:
- Linear
- Leaf Margin:
- Entire
- Hairs Present:
- No
- Leaf Length:
- > 6 inches
- Leaf Width:
- < 1 inch
- Leaf Description:
- The basal and stem leaves are up to 10 inches long, linear with entire margins.
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Stem:
- Stem Color:
- Green
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Surface:
- Hairy (pubescent)
- Stem Description:
- Green stems with white hairs
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Meadow
- Pond
- Woodland
- Landscape Theme:
- Butterfly Garden
- Native Garden
- Pollinator Garden
- Rain Garden
- Attracts:
- Butterflies
- Pollinators
- Small Mammals
- Songbirds
- Resistance To Challenges:
- Heat
