Silver Bluestem , Silver Beardgrass
Bothriochloa laguroides (DC.) Herter ssp. torreyana (Steud.) Allred & Gould
Poaceae
Description
Silver Bluestem is easily identified by its striking silver-white cottony inflorescence. It usually grows from a semi-prostrate base with no rhizomes. Its stems can be a meter or slightly more and bend at each of its glabrous white nodes. Stem sheaths are shorter than the internodes. Its mostly basal leaves grow to about 20 cm, about 5-18 mm wide, and tapering to a point. Their upper surfaces and margins are rough to the touch. The fuzzy, white terminal, contracted, panicle is narrowly oblong of up to 20 cm and has numerous branches, greater than 10, shorter than the main axis, and bearing silvery-white fuzzy spikelets with short awns. The densely villous branches can grow to about 5 cm. Silver Bluestem is considered fair grazing for livestock (prior to getting coarse in the summer) but poor forage for wildlife.Habitat
Silver Bluestem is a perennial, warm-season, native grass considered a pioneer or mid-successional; it is one of the first to appear after a drought. It tends to be replaced by other species as the conditions improve. Grows on prairies and rocky slopes and occurs on old, released farmlands in just a few years. It grows on all types of soil in both shade and sun but prefers dry sites.Images
Plant Characteristics
Duration: Perennial
Stem Texture: Hairless/Smooth
Growth Habit: Bunch grass, Grasses
Season: Warm
Distribution
: 01 - Pineywoods, 02 - Gulf Prairies and Marshes, 03 - Post Oak Savannah, 04 - Blackland Prairies, 05 - Cross Timbers and Prairies, 06 - South Texas Plains, 07 - Edwards Plateau, 08 - Rolling Plains, 09 - High Plains, 10 - Trans-Pecos
Distributions
Distribution refers to the ecological region in Texas that a plant has been found. You can also view a clickable map.
Book: Know Your Grasses (B-182)
Collection: Grasses
