Switchgrass
| Plant Profile | |
|---|---|
| FYUSE 3d Image |
Common Name: Switchgrass Species Name: Panicum virgatum Plant Type: Grasses & Grass-like Family Name: Poaceae, Grass Family Tribe: Paniceae, Panicgrass Tribe |
Examples of SwitchgrassPanicum virgatum
| Plant Facts | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Native |
| Duration | Perennial |
| Season | Warm |
| Distribution in the U.S. | Eastern two-thirds from Maine and Canada southwestward to Arizona, Baja California and Mexico |
| Distribution in Oklahoma | Western two-thirds of the state |
ID Characteristics
- Field Identification Characteristics
Vegetative
- Robust grass with broad blades
- Triangular tuft of hair at the base of blades
- Typically in clonal bunches
Floral
- Seed head large and open with stiffly upright branches
- Solitary, dorsally compressed seed heads at the end of each branch
- Leaf and Stem Characteristics
- Plant Height: 80-200 centimeters
- Ligule Type: Ciliate membranous
- Sheath: Glabrous
- Leaves: Cauline
- Floral Characteristics
- Inflorescence Type: Panicles
- Florets Per Spikelet: 2
- Glumes: Unequal; upper glumes longer than lemmas
| Habitat/Ecology | |
|---|---|
| Soil Type | Various, moist soils |
| Habitat | Floodplains, open words and rocky streambeds |
| Successional Stage | Mid to late |
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