The Blues Little Bluestem

The Blues Little Bluestem is a native grass with upright slender blue-green leaves with pink-tinged stems and has burgundy-red fall color.  Tiny purple-bronze flowers rise high above the foliage on stems in late summer and are followed by fluffy silver seed heads that persist through winter.  Grows best in full sun and well-drained soils. Drought tolerant once established.

Schizachyrium scoparium is a native host plant for 6 different skippers:  the Ottoe, Indian, Crossline, Dusted, Cobweb, and Dixie skipper.  The seeds are eaten by small birds.

MAINTENANCE NEEDS:  Low maintenance plant.  Cut to ground late winter or early spring.

LANDSCAPE USES: Accents or Group Plantings, Borders, Naturalized Areas, Woodland Garden, Rock Gardens, Native Gardens, Groundcover, and Containers.

COMPANION PLANTS: Joe-Pye Weed, Lamb’s Ear, False Indigo

IMAGE: Photo by David J. Stang, Schizachyrium scoparium The Blues 1zz, CC BY-SA 4.0

*As plants have ranges in appearance they may not appear as the images shown.