Myriad Botanical Gardens - Oklahoma City, USA

Common name: Little Bluestem

Family: Poaceae (Grass Family)

Distribution: North America

Life form: Perennial plant

Comments: Schizachyrium scoparium, commonly called little bluestem, is one of the dominant grasses of the tallgrass prairie. It forms upright clumps of slender green leaves with a tinge of blue at the base. In August, purplish-bronze flowers appear in 3" long racemes on branched stems rising above the foliage. Attractive clusters of fluffy, silvery-white seed heads appear after the flowers, and may persist into winter. Most outstanding feature of this grass may be the bronze-orange fall foliage color. 'Autumn Jazz' is distinctly shorter than the species at two and a half feet tall. Its shortness helps it not flop over so much, which is a common problem for little bluestem.