Virginia ecotype
Duration: Perennial, warm season bunchgrass
Habit: Upright, clumpingSize: 1-4 ft. high, half as wide
Habitat: Prairies, roadsides, steep topography and hills, dry open woods, forest edgesMoisture: Dry to average, well-draining
Light: Full sun, part sunSoils: Clay, loamy, sandy, rocky
Uses: prairie restoration, steep topography, wild meadows, filler, added texture to landscape, en-mass planting
Andropogon ternarius (Splitbeard bluestem)
In the spring and summer, blades of this tough grass are blue-green, and in the fall turn into a kaleidoscope of blues, purples and reds, curing to straw-colored hues after the killing frost.
Andropogon ternarius is known as splitbeard bluestem due to its Y or V shaped seed heads. The inflorescences emerge covered in silvery, white hairs, giving an effect with shimmering silvery tufts that sparkle in the sunlight. En-mass this grass is a sight to behold in autumn and winter.
Splitbeard bluestem grass thrives in poor soils that are coarse, rocky, or sandy and well draining. Perfect for tough spots and steep topography, lending itself equally well to planned landscapes and ecological restorations. It will flop over in higher nutrient soils, and prefers lean soils and high root competition.
This species is a larval host plant for numerous insects, such as leafhoppers, grasshoppers, and a few skipper butterflies. Provides nesting material, seed and shelter for insects, small mammals and birds.