Page 17 - Free State Winter 2021

plumes of seeds eclipse late summer flowers. Like the
other cultivars, the strong stems stay upright despite
wind and weather.

Bouteloua gracilis ‘Blonde Ambition” is called both
blue grama and mosquito grass. It doesn’t attract
mosquitos but the seed spikes look a lot like mosquito
larva, which hang on only one side of the flowering
stem and flutter in the breezes. These warm season,
densely clumped grasses thrive in full sun and dry to
medium well-drained soils and grow in a wide range of
dry soil types. ‘Blonde Ambition’ grows 12-15 inches tall
with narrow blue gray slender foliage that turns golden
brown with highlights of orange and red in autumn.
The late summer flower spike holds chartreus flowers
rise to 2 feet tall, providing a lovely color contrast
between the bright chartreus and the blue gray foliage.
The flowers mature into blonde seed heads, which
enhances the landscape from autumn through winter.
Grass is cold hardy from USDA zones from 3-10 and can
spread by self-seeding.

Bouteloua curtipendula or sideoats grama has narrow
blue gray leaf blades that grow in a dense clump 1 to
1 ½ feet tall and turns a golden brown with red and
orange highlights in autumn. Late summer brings Panicum Heavy Metal
bronze purple flowers on 3-foot tall arching stems,
which mature into tan oat like spiklets that hang from clusters at the ends of the flower stems and dance in
one side of the stem. These grasses tolerate a wide the lightest of breezes. Like many of the native grasses,
range of dry, well-drained soil types and thrive in full the Indian woodoats are a host for many native
sun. Cold hardy from USDA zones 4-9, Bouteloua butterfly larva and a food source for birds and other
curtipendula freely self-seeds. small mammals. These grasses can naturalize very
quickly and may spread aggressively.
Chasmanthium latifolium commonly called both
Seaoats and Indian woodoats, prefer to grow in an Muhlenbergia capillarisone has many colorful common
upright clump form in full sun to part shade and names from Gulf Muhly, Hairgrass, Mule Grass, Pink Hair
fertile, moist, well-drained soils and are slightly salt Grass, Pink Muhly Grass and Purple Muhly. This warn
tolerant. Cold tolerant from USDA zones 3-8, the Indian season clump forming grass is winter hardy from USDA
woodoats can grow 2-5 feet tall and 1-2 feet wide and zones 5-9, and prefer to grow in full sun and dry, slightly
are the best of our native grasses that thrive in the acidic well drained soils. They are heat, drought, salt
shade. Spring brings the newly emerged bright green and humidity tolerant and are resistant to deer. Gulf
foliage that the cool frosty temperatures turn into a Muhly grows well in many soil types growing 2-3 feet tall
soft yellow gold color that fades to brown through and wide, and though it doesn’t spread by rhizomes it
the winter months. The most attractive quality of the can easily self-seed. The thread thin dark glossy green
Indian woodoat grass is the seed heads that emerge blades of grass and stems grow in an arching fountain
green but by late summer matured into a bronze color. like clump. In the autumn the tall flower stalks emerge
The distinctive flat oat-like seed heads nod in dangling
(continued on next page)
Get Active. Stay Involved. • WINTER 2021 17