''Bouteloua curtipendula'', commonly known as sideoats grama, is a
perennial
A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...
, short
prairie
Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...
grass that is native throughout the temperate and tropical
Western Hemisphere
The Western Hemisphere is the half of the planet Earth that lies west of the prime meridian (which crosses Greenwich, London, United Kingdom) and east of the antimeridian. The other half is called the Eastern Hemisphere. Politically, the term We ...
, from
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
south to
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
.
The
species epithet comes from
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
"shortened" and "hanging".
Description
![Bouteloua curtipendula closeup of spikes in bloom](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/Bouteloua_curtipendula_closeup_of_spikes_in_bloom.jpg)
Sideoats grama is a warm-season grass. The
culms (flowering stems) are tall,
and have
alternate leaves that are concentrated at the bottom of the culm.
The leaves are light green to blue-green in color, and up to across.
![Bouteloua curtipendula zoom](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/Bouteloua_curtipendula_zoom.jpg)
The flowers bloom in summer and autumn. They consist of compact
spikes
The SPIKES protocol is a method used in clinical medicine to break bad news to patients and families. As receiving bad news can cause distress and anxiety, clinicians need to deliver the news carefully. By using the SPIKES method for introducing a ...
that hang alternately in a
raceme
A raceme ( or ) or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are produced as the s ...
along the top of the culm. The spikes often fall to one side of the stem, which gives the plant its name. There are 10–50 spikes per culm, and in each spike there are three to six
spikelet
A spikelet, in botany, describes the typical arrangement of the flowers of grasses, sedges and some other Monocots.
Each spikelet has one or more florets. The spikelets are further grouped into panicles or spikes. The part of the spikelet that ...
s, or rarely as many as 10. Each spikelet is long
and consists of two
glume
In botany, a glume is a bract (leaf-like structure) below a spikelet in the inflorescence (flower cluster) of grasses (Poaceae) or the flowers of sedges (Cyperaceae). There are two other types of bracts in the spikelets of grasses: the lemma and ...
s and two
floret
This glossary of botanical terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to botany and plants in general. Terms of plant morphology are included here as well as at the more specific Glossary of plant morphology and Glossary o ...
s. One of the florets is fertile, and has colorful orange to brownish red
anther
The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10
Morphology and terminology
A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filam ...
s and feathery white stigmas during the blooming period, which contrasts with the pale green, pale red, greenish-red, or purple color of the spikes themselves.
After blooming, the spikes become straw-colored. The fertile florets produce seeds, and when they are ripe, the spikes fall to the ground.
Distribution and habitat
Sideoats grama grows well on mountainous plateaus, rocky slopes, and sandy plains. It is drought- and cold-tolerant and is hardy in
USDA hardiness zone
A hardiness zone is a geographic area defined as having a certain average annual minimum temperature, a factor relevant to the survival of many plants. In some systems other statistics are included in the calculations. The original and most wide ...
s 4–9 (average annual minimums of ).
Ecology
It provides larval food for the veined ctenucha (''
Ctenucha venosa'').
Conservation
It is currently listed as a threatened species in the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...
of
Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
. It is considered as an endangered species in Connecticut.
Uses
Sideoats grama is considered a good foraging grass for livestock. It is planted for erosion control.
Cultivation
It is cultivated 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 i ...
for
native plant
In biogeography, a native species is indigenous to a given region or ecosystem if its presence in that region is the result of only local natural evolution (though often popularised as "with no human intervention") during history. The term is equ ...
and
drought-tolerant
Drought tolerance is the ability to which a plant maintains its biomass production during arid or drought conditions. Some plants are naturally adapted to dry conditions'','' surviving with protection mechanisms such as desiccation tolerance, detox ...
garden
A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate both ...
s.
Culture
Sideoats grama is the
state grass
The following is a list of official U.S. state grasses.
__TOC__
Table
See also
*Lists of U.S. state insignia
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:List Of U.S. State Grasses
Grasses of the United States, .
Lists of flora of the United States ...
of
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
.
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q4950436
curtipendula
Grasses of North America
Grasses of South America
Grasses of Argentina
Grasses of Mexico
Grasses of the United States
Native grasses of the Great Plains region
Flora of the United States
Flora of Central America
Flora of the Chihuahuan Desert
Symbols of Texas
Taxa named by Mariano Lagasca
Garden plants of North America
Garden plants of South America
Drought-tolerant plants
Warm-season grasses of North America