This week’s plant is Prairie Dropseed prairie grass. It is an ornamental grass native from Texas to southern Canada.  It is found in 27 states and four Canadian provinces.

Plant Profile: Sporobolus heterolepis

Common Name: Prairie Dropseed

Family: Poaceae

Category: Perennial bunchgrass

Growth Habit: Rounded tuft appearance.

Hardiness Zone: 3 – 8

Height/Spread: 1-2ft H/2-3ft spread

Foliage and flower characteristics: This is a fine textured grass with narrow leaves ranging from a rich green hue in summer to a golden rust color in the fall. It produces thin panicles with many branches that terminate in small spikelets, with each spikelet holding a single floret.

Bloom Time: July – September with rusty brown flowers approximately 3ft in height.

Soil/Light Requirements: Full sun with good drainage. Is drought tolerant, but does not tolerate shading by other tall plants. Will also tolerate akaline soil.  This plant will do well in a xeri-landscape as it can tolerant moist to dry soil conditions and rocky soil. It pairs well with Purple Coneflowers, Rudbeckia, Butterfly weed and even Little Bluestem grass.  Attracts songbirds and pollinators.

Propagation: By division.