''Andropogon virginicus'' is a species of

grass Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in lawns a ...

known by several common names, including broomsedge bluestem, yellowsedge bluestem and (in Australia, because it was introduced to that country after being used as packaging for bottles of

American whiskey American whiskey is whiskey (a distilled beverage produced from a fermented mash of cereal grain) produced in the United States. American whiskeys made from mashes with at least 51% of their named grains include bourbon whiskey, rye whiskey, ...

) whiskey grass. It is native to the southeastern United States and as far north as the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lak ...

. It is known as an

introduced species An introduced species, alien species, exotic species, adventive species, immigrant species, foreign species, non-indigenous species, or non-native species is a species living outside its native distributional range, but which has arrived ther ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

and

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

, where it is weedy.

Invasive species

''Andropogon virginicus'' has also been introduced to Japan and Australia. It competes with other species by allelopathy, releasing persistent herbicidal chemicals from its dying tissues, such as decaying leaves. ''A. virginicus'' colonizes disturbed areas such as abandoned

mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic ...

sites. It is a weed of pastures and grazing ranges, where it proves less palatable and nutritious to

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ma ...

than other grasses. This species is tolerant of fire and grows back quickly and more abundantly after a burn. It is perhaps most problematic in Hawaii, where its natural growth patterns are out of synch with the local climate. It is dormant during the Hawaiian rainy season, dying back and leaving the slopes it has colonized exposed and vulnerable to significant

erosion Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is dis ...

. Despite its weediness, the grass is sometimes grown as an

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that ...

. The species is now considered invasive in New Caledonia and is stated in legal texts. The species features on the list of Invasive Alien Species of Union Concern. This means that import of the species and trade in the species is forbidden in the whole of the European Union. BroomsedgeInWinter

Life history

''Andropogon virginicus'' is a perennial grass forming narrow clumps of stems up to just over a meter in maximum height pprox. 3 feet 3 inches Its stems and leaves are green when new, turning purplish to orange and then straw-colored with age. It produces large amounts of seeds small enough to disperse on the wind. This grass is successful in a wide range of habitats. It is a prolific seed producer, it has a high germination rate and seedling survival rate, and it thrives in poor soils.

Uses

''Andropogon virginicus'' has been used as the straw base for the production of handmade brooms in the southeastern United States.

References

External links

*
Grass Manual Treatment

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q309785 virginicus Warm-season grasses of North America Grasses of the United States Grasses of Canada Flora of Eastern Canada Flora of the Southeastern United States Flora of the Eastern United States Flora of the Great Lakes region (North America) Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus