Scientific Family
Poaceae
Synonyms
Dichanthelium scribnerianum, Panicum scoparium var. angustifolium, Panicum scoparium var. pauciflorum
Other common names
few-flowered panicgrass
Plant type
Grasses
Riparian
No
Grass Description
Origin
Native
Season
Cool
Warm
Found in dry open oak or pine woodlands; often in sandy to clay soils.
Plant Community
Pinyon Juniper Woodlands
Montane Conifer Forest
Interior Chaparral
Grasslands
Low elevation
4000
High elevation
7000
Similar species
Dichanthelium oligosanthes var. scribnerianum
General Description
This grass develops a stem during the spring that becomes 1 to 2 feet tall by early summer. This ascending to erect stem is unbranched, or may have 1 to 2 short side branches. There are 4 to 6 alternate leaves along each stem.
Tufted perennial. Spikelets 2.5 to 4.3 mm long, usually obovoid, turgid; upper glumes usually with an orange or purple spot at the base, the veins prominent, glumes hairy.
Grass type
Perennial bunchgrass
Rhizomes
No
Stolons
No
Clump Diameter 2 ft or more
No
Bushy - highly branched
No
Height with Seedheads
12 inches or more
Seedhead Structure
Branched - open and spreading
Seedhead droops
No
First bloom month
April
Last bloom month
November
Flower Characteristics
Flowers per Spikelet
Multi-flowered
Spikelets One-Sided
No
Awns
Absent
Three Awns
No
Awns bent
No
Flower and Seedhead Notes
Primary seedheads are briefly open-pollinated, then self-pollinated from late May to early June. The smaller secondary seedheads, produced from June to November, are also self-pollinated. Spikelets are green to reddish-green and covered with fine hairs.
Vegetative Characteristics
Blade is hairy
Yes
Blade margins white
No
Blade cross-section
Flat
Leaves are dull green, flat, and hairy along their lower margins. The upper blade surface is hairless. Leaf sheaths are green, purplish green, or purple; they are strongly veined and more or less covered with long spreading hairs.
Sheath is hairy
Yes
Tufts of hair top of sheath or collar
Yes
Ligule
Hairy
Auricles
No
Provides green forage for livestock and wildlife during the winter and birds eat the seeds. Provides nesting materials for native bees.