''Sorghastrum nutans'', commonly known as either Indiangrass or yellow Indiangrass, is a

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and th ...

n prairie grass found in the central and eastern United States and Canada, especially in the

Great Plains The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, a ...

and tallgrass prairies.

Description

Indiangrass is a warm-season

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also widel ...

bunchgrass Tussock grasses or bunch grasses are a group of grass species in the family Poaceae. They usually grow as singular plants in clumps, tufts, hummocks, or bunches, rather than forming a sod or lawn, in meadows, grasslands, and prairies. As perennial ...

. It is intolerant to shade. It grows tall, and is distinguished by a "rifle-sight"

ligule A ligule (from "strap", variant of ''lingula'', from ''lingua'' "tongue") is a thin outgrowth at the junction of leaf and leafstalk of many grasses (Poaceae) and sedges. A ligule is also a strap-shaped extension of the corolla, such as that of a ...

where the leaf blade attaches to the leaf sheath. The leaf is about long. It blooms from late summer to early fall, producing branched clusters (

panicle A panicle is a much-branched inflorescence. (softcover ). Some authors distinguish it from a compound spike inflorescence, by requiring that the flowers (and fruit) be pedicellate (having a single stem per flower). The branches of a panicle are of ...

s) of spikelets. The spikelets are golden-brown during the blooming period, and each contain one perfect

floret This glossary of botanical terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to botany and plants in general. Terms of plant morphology are included here as well as at the more specific Glossary of plant morphology and Glossary o ...

that has three large, showy yellow

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the fila ...

s and two feather-like stigmas. One of the two

glume In botany, a glume is a bract (leaf-like structure) below a spikelet in the inflorescence (flower cluster) of grasses (Poaceae) or the flowers of sedges (Cyperaceae). There are two other types of bracts in the spikelets of grasses: the lemma and ...

s at the base of the spikelets is covered in silky white hairs. The flowers are cross-pollinated by the wind. The branches of pollinated flower clusters bend outwards. At maturity, the seeds fall to the ground. There are about 175,000 seeds per pound. SorghastrumNutans.jpg, Leaves in June Sorghastrum nutans (3912211835).jpg, "Rifle-sight" ligule at the base of a leaf Sorghastrum nutans flowers closeup.jpg, Flowers with yellow stamens and golden-brown spikelets Sorghastrum nutans ARS-1.jpg, Closeup of seeds

Ecology

''Sorghastrum nutans'' is prominent in the tallgrass prairie ecosystem and the

northern Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a r ...

central Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known a ...

, and Flint Hills tall grassland

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of ...

s, along with big bluestem (''Andropogon gerardi''), little bluestem (''Schizachyrium scoparium'') and switchgrass (''Panicum virgatum''). It is also common in areas of longleaf pine. It is adapted in the United States from the southern border to Canada and from the eastern seaboard to Montana, Wyoming and Utah."Indiangrass."
Plant Fact Sheet.2011. Accessed July 26, 2015 It regrows with renewed vitality after fires, so controlled burns are used, replacing extirpated large herbivores (i.e. bison), for habitat renewal. It is a larval host to the

pepper-and-salt skipper ''Amblyscirtes hegon'', the pepper-and-salt skipper, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is found from Nova Scotia and Maine, west to southern Manitoba, south to Georgia, northern Florida and south-eastern Texas. It is mostly absent fro ...

.The Xerces Society (2016), ''Gardening for Butterflies: How You Can Attract and Protect Beautiful, Beneficial Insects'', Timber Press.

Culture

Indiangrass is the official state grass of both

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

and

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

. The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service lists the following uses for Indiangrass: *Erosion control *Livestock *Pollinators *Restoration *Wildlife

References

External links

USDA Plants Profile — ''Sorghastrum nutans'' (Yellow Indiangrass)

Missouri Botanical Garden: ''Sorghastrum nutans''
— ''horticultural info.''
Floridata: Yellow Indiangrass

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q3046578 Panicoideae Grasses of North America Bunchgrasses of North America Warm-season grasses of North America Grasses of the United States Grasses of Canada Native grasses of the Great Plains region Flora of the United States Flora of the Canadian Prairies Flora of the Western United States Flora of the Eastern United States Flora of North America Plants described in 1903 Flora without expected TNC conservation status

Description

Ecology

Culture

See also

References

External links