Plant Profiles: Little Bluestem - Schizachyrium scoparium
This plant profile features a tough warm season American Native prairie grass which is able to handle the harshest conditions out there. Fire adapted. Disturbance advantageous. Competitive. And aesthetically pleasing. Let's discover what makes this grass unique
Quick Identification: Little Bluestem is a bunch forming grass growing usually around 2-3' tall, in summer it can be distinguished by its blue-ish appearance (left side of the image above, Lehigh Gap, PA) in fall it is highlighted by its bursts of glowing feathered seed heads and deeper red-copper tones than other grasses.
Little Bluestem is native to nearly all of the contiguous United States except California, Nevada, and Oregon, with populations spreading into Canada (mostly Saskatchewan) and Northern Mexico. Within this range it's most prolific in dry sandy soils: coastal plains, grasslands, barrens, Balds; it's also the most prolific Texas grassland species (see above).
Somewhat uniquely Little Bluestem is able to thrive significantly well in anthropogenic disturbance and keep itself prolific in the face of invasives. Most notably along the side of highways in cracks in asphalt (See Pennsylvania Turnpike Above Left) and oddly enough cemeteries (Hibernia Cemetery Abive Right). It can be resistant to herbacides when dormant, Salt resistant, fire tolerant, drought tolerant, heavy metal tolerant, calcerous soils.... Aside from heavy wet soils and heavy grazing, Little Bluestem survives almost anything relatively well.
Carbon: Like nearly-all american prairie grasses (and non-turf grasses in general) Little Bluestem is able to store carbon in the soil through deep fibrous roots which can reach around 8' in depth (not as deep as Big Bluestem but impressive considering your lawn reaches like 3"). Little Bluestem uses C4 Carbon fixation which essentially captures more carbon, uses lower oxygen, and photosynthesis can occur in higher temperatures compared to other plants.
Fire Adaption: Given the depth of the plants root systems it's not shocking to see Little Bluestem is unaffected by fire. The dry stems are excellent fire fuel, sights like the one above (New Jersey Pine Barrens) usually signifies a recent intense burn or clearing
Uses: In terms of direct modern usage when young in spring the grasses have a high nutritional value to Cattle and Horses which goes away as the plant grows in summer.
Growth and Ecology: Aside from creating habitat as a pioneer species and nesting, little bluestem is a host to multiple skipper species. From seeds little bluestem is actually slightly slow to establish itself, being tolerable to disturbance it requires occasionally requires time before it can gain a foothold in areas other species tend to die out of. This is my first year growing from seed so I'm unsure what the results will be.
Landscape and Horticulture: Erosion control is a primary functional purpose to using this grass outside of all the good reasons to use it...personally I like to use this in roadside plantings or making a "beachy" native plant palette. There are also incredibly blue natural ecotype and horticultural varieties used in the nursery trade (credit Prairiemoon nursery for the above photo).
Happy hunting!
