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3.15: Prairie cordgrass

  • Page ID
    91490
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    prairie cordgrass
    Prairie cordgrass in its native habitat showing fall color. Photo by Dave Hansen.

    Spartina pectinata

    Warm season; Perennial

    Characteristics: 4–6’; upright arching; flowers green; foliage green to yellow green in fall

    Growing Conditions: average to wet soils; full sun; hardy zones 3–8

    In native habitats, this grass is found in wet meadows and ditches, the edges of wetlands, and lakeshores. It prefers wet soils, and can tolerate sandy seashores and heavy clay soils. Its strong rhizomes can be aggressive in a garden, but are perfect for lakeshores and areas too wet for other plants. It provides a yellow fall color.

    Nativars:

    • ‘Aureo-Marginata’: variegated prairie cordgrass, yellow margins and stripes on the foliage, 4–6’

    Associated Lepidoptera:

    Species that use prairie cordgrass according to the literature are the tortricid moth Aethes spartinana, the noctuid moth Chortodes enervata, the noctuid moth Mesapamea stipata, and the pyralid moth Peoria gemmatella.


    This page titled 3.15: Prairie cordgrass is shared under a CC BY-NC 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Diane M. Narem and Mary Hockenberry Meyer (Minnesota Libraries Publishing Project) via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform; a detailed edit history is available upon request.

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