Emerging under adverse conditions, a volunteer grassland offers a framework for naturalistic design.
Loading...
Search
Andropogon ternarius splitbeard bluestem
splitbeard bluestem
Characteristics
Descriptions
Light Requirements
sun
Soil Moisture
dry
Soil Description
acid, average, poor, loam, sand, gravel/rock
Height
2'-5'
Recommended Spacing
2'
Bloom Time
August, September, October
Bloom Color
white
Hardiness Zone
5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10
Description
Andropogon ternarius is a very ornamental, tough bunchgrass with a tremendous fall show. Forming dense clumps 1' in diameter, it can reach up to 5' when in bloom. It's quite variable in size across its geographic range. The leaf blades are slender, and develop a blue cast as they mature. The slivery white seed tufts are about 2" long and split in two, hence the common name splitbeard bluestem. It's truly spectacular in fall when the autumn light amplifies the fairylike seedheads. They're fabulous contrasted against the stems and leaf blades that by then will have developed vivid shades of orange, purple, and red. The foliage ages to coffee and copper colors, sliding into a background gray in winter. Splitbeard bluestem is a primarily grass of the southeastern United States and northern Mexico, found growing in longleaf pine sandhills and in dry to moist soils of prairies and open woodlands.
Cultivation
Splitbeard bluestem is adapted to dry, infertile soil and lots of sun. It is not picky about soils as long as they are well drained. Planting in rich, fertile soils or under irrigation will result in lax, floppy growth or just the opposite—you may kill it with kindness. Can be used as a specimen, planted in large groups, or incorporated into a native meadow. It provides strong visual interest well into winter and shouldn't be cut back until early spring before new growth emerges.
Recommended Spacing
Space plants 2' on center.
Splitbeard bluestem stays in a fairly tight bunch, but sometimes the flowering stems can flop. At 2' on center, it wil have some room to show off its gorgeous blooms while having companions nearby for mutual support.
Companion Plants
With its emerging blue-green foliage, Andropogon ternarius complements spring-blooming perennials like Amsonia hubrichtii (Hubricht's bluestar), Phlox pilosa (downy phlox), and Baptisia australis (blue wild indigo). As it develops more color and flowering stems begin to emerge in summer, chime in with the sunny flowers of Oenothera fruticosa (narrowleaf evening primrose) and the unique look of Eryngium yuccifolium (button eryngo). Wind down the growing season with autumn blooms of one of the blazing stars like Liatris aspera (tall blazing star), Eupatorium hyssopifolium (hyssopleaf thoroughwort), and any one of several asters, like Symphyotrichum oblongifolium (aromatic aster). And of course, it's right at home with grass companions like Schizachyrium scoparium (little bluestem), Eragrostis spectabilis (purple lovegrass), and Muhlenbergia capillaris (hairawn muhly). For a spectacular display of glowing grasses, pair it with the billowy white plumes of Muhlenbergia capillaris 'White Cloud' (white muhly grass).
Additional Notes
The seeds of splitbeard bluestem are eaten by prairie chicken, junco, wild turkey, chipping sparrow, and meadow mouse. The genus Andropogon supports up to 11 species of lepidoptera.
Pricing & Availability
BUY MORE,
SAVE MORE
$25 off orders of $500 or more
$50 off orders of $750 or more
$100 off orders of $1,000 or more
$300 off orders of $2,000 or more
15% off orders of $3,000 or more
Would you like your plants shipped later? You may choose to do so in the shopping cart.
Note: Early spring shipments might include plants that have not yet broken dormancy, or have not been vernalized and will be frost-tender. Please use your best judgment when selecting your preferred ship week.
Did you know? When plants are available from multiple growers, we list growers closest to your location first.
Why choose plants from the nearest grower? Choosing a the grower closest to you makes it more likely the plants are consistent with your ecoregion and better adapted to your location. In addition, shipping plants shorter distances typically uses fewer resources, something we can all get behind!
Maps, Wetland Status & More
MAP OF NATIVE RANGE
Recorded County Distribution: USDA data.
Native To
| AL, AR, DE, GA, IL, KS, KY, MD, MI, MO, NC, NJ, OK, SC, TN, VA, FL, LA, TX |
Legal Status
Wetland Status
| Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain | FACU |
| Eastern Mountains and Piedmont | FACU |
| Great Plains | FACU |
| Midwest | FACU |
MAP OF WETLAND DELINEATION REGIONS
Interpreting Wetland Status
|
Code |
Status |
Designation |
Comment |
|
OBL |
Obligate Wetland |
Hydrophyte |
Almost always occur in wetlands |
|
FACW |
Facultative Wetland |
Hydrophyte |
Usually occur in wetlands, but may occur in non-wetlands |
|
FAC |
Facultative |
Hydrophyte |
Occur in wetlands and non-wetlands |
|
FACU |
Facultative Upland |
Nonhydrophyte |
Usually occur in non-wetlands, but may occur in wetlands |
|
UPL |
Obligate Upland |
Nonhydrophyte |
Almost never occur in wetlands |
Classification
| Kingdom | Plantae | Plants |
| Subkingdom | Tracheobionta | Vascular plants |
| Superdivision | Spermatophyta | Seed plants |
| Division | Magnoliophyta | Flowering plants |
| Class | Liliopsida | Monocotyledons |
| Subclass | Commelinidae | |
| Order | Cyperales | |
| Family | Poaceae | Grass family |
| Genus | Andropogon | bluestem |
| Species | Andropogon ternarius | splitbeard bluestem |
ADDITIONAL COMMON NAMES:
silvery beardgrass, split bluestem, feather bluestem, splitbeard broomsedge
Plant Sizes
Sizes Sizes
Sizes info
Shipping & Planting
SHIPPING INFO:
Shipping is free on all plants orders!
Your plants will ship using each grower’s preferred method: FedEx Ground, UPS Ground, or Spee-Dee Ground (in select midwestern states). Our growers ship orders Monday through Wednesday. The farther your plants need to travel, the earlier in the week they will ship. The goal is to have all plants delivered by the end of the week.
Shipping plugs:
Plugs are shipped in full flats, sometimes also referred to as trays. Multiple flats can be shipped in a single box. The flats are wrapped in netting or craft paper to secure the plants, and spacers are used between flats to keep the plants from being crushed.
When you unpack your plugs, the plants will have been somewhat flattened by the netting or craft paper. They will straighten out within a couple of days. You may also gently “fluff” them a bit to speed up the process. In some cases, your plants might have been cut back before packing, if the grower deemed them to have become too tall for safe packaging. Don’t worry, though, these guys know what they’re doing and would not compromise the health of the plants. They’ll fill back in in no time.
After receiving your plants’ journey in a dark box, it will be important to acclimate them to sunlight again. Over a couple of days, you should gradually move them into their preferred light exposure, and water them as per their requirement.
Although we always recommend putting your plants in the ground as soon as possible, they can stay healthy in the flats for a considerable amount of time. The key is to respect their growing requirements: if the species requires full sun, do not store them in the shade. If it is best adapted to dry soil, do not over-water.
PLANTING INFO:
Planting plugs:
We consider plugs ready to ship when the plants’ roots have filled the entire liner cell and the plants can easily be pulled out. In some cases you will have to go about it gently, wiggling the plant by the crown, and possibly squeezing the bottom of the liner to compress the growing medium and release the roots. Other times, the plants will appear to be root bound. They are not in the traditional sense. The plants are healthy but they have used up all the growing medium available to them. Plugs are at an aggressive stage of growth. As soon as planted the roots will immediately expand into your native soil. They establish faster than plants in larger containers, because they don’t have the luxury of a lot of growing media that can inhibit the roots from venturing outside of their comfort zone.
We are not going to address area preparation because the process can be complex and is always site-specific. However, as a rule, we recommend disturbing the soil as little as possible, and we do not recommend amending the soil. If you chose the right plant for the right conditions they will thrive. Any disturbance and amendments will only encourage weeds to emerge that never had a chance to do so before.
Installing plugs cannot be easier: dig a hole large enough for the roots to fit snugly inside, then water them in to eliminate air gaps. We recommend using a soil knife, sometimes referred to as hori hori, or a drill-adapted auger if it’s a large installation. If you use an auger, you will need a powerful drill. Depending on the size of the project and the type of soil, the process can be beyond what an average drill will bear. Mulching is recommended after installation to help keep weeds down while the plants establish. Be sure to keep it away from the crown of the plants. For large projects, you may want to mulch the area before planting, rather than tiptoeing through it after the fact. As a side note: if you are installing plugs in the fall, you might want to plant them so that the crown is about ¾” lower than the surrounding soil. The winter’s freeze/thaw cycles can push plugs out if the roots did not have enough time to establish and anchor them in.