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| "Ordered some grass seed a few months ago. Virtually 100% germination rate, the plants are strong and healthy now. Thanks!" -Virginia M. |
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California Native Grass Seed
Click here for sowing information.
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good to eat
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butterfly nectar
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caterpillar
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hand collected
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hummingbird
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pollinator
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Native Grasses of California
24" x 36" poster
Beautiful paintings of 23 different native grass species, with distribution map for each. Includes detailed close-up of flower stalk. $18.99 plus $3.00 handling charge. Shipped separately in tube.
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click for larger image
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Golden State Native Grass Erosion Mix
Composed of three quick-growing, perennial native bunchgrasses (blue wildrye, California brome, and California meadow barley) which will provide soil cover on denuded slopes. Also acts as nurse plants for the longer-lived, initially slower-growing native species. One pound covers approximately 2000 sq. ft. Seeding rate is 15-20 lbs. per acre. May be sown with plugs of stipas, fescues, etc.
| 1/2 lb - $12.00 |
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| 1 lb - $20.00 |
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Achnatherum hymenoides
Indian Rice Grass
We decided to offer this grass after reading Edith V. A. Murphey's description (see Books): "This bunchgrass is important to Indian life because it will grow without water in pure sand and furnishes food for man and beast. It has been destroyed in many areas by overgrazing. Seed was ground into mush." Ornamental, drought-tolerant, and graceful. Excellent addition to the wildflower meadow and good specimen plant. 1.5' tall and 1' wide. Seeding rate: 10 lb./acre.
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Bromus carinatus
California Brome
A vigorous brome to 2' tall. Good nurse plant for stipas, fescues, etc. Seeds eaten by quail and used for pinole. Larval food plant for the Umber Skipper butterfly. Seeding rate: 8 lbs./acre
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Calamagrostis nutkaensis
Pacific Reed Grass
A large handsome grass from the central and north coast, growing 3-4' tall and equally wide. Light-green blades. Striking as accent plant or as background in "grass gardens". We use it as a foundation planting. Rake in spring to clean up. Packets only.
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photo by Arvind Kumar
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Danthonia Californica
California Oatgrass
Bunchgrass 1.5' tall with dense leafy tufts, found throughout mountains and coast ranges of California in both open and partly shaded areas. It is considered an "ice-cream plant" by range specialists because of its extreme palatability to livestock. Withstands trampling and traffic. Packets only.
| Packet - $4.50 |
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NOT CURRENTLY AVAILABLE |
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Deschampsia cespitosa
Tufted Hairgrass
One of the most important range species of the West and often grown as an ornamental. Withstands close grazing. Valuable in controlling soil erosion. Found in mountain meadows. Clumps are 1'-3' high. Seeding rate: 6 lbs./acre.
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Deschampsia cespitosa ssp. holciformis
Coastal Hairgrass
A must for the coastal prairie or sea-bluff garden, this ornamental low-growing grass is broader than it is tall, forming neat clumps 8-l2" tall and 2' wide. Dark-green leaves give pincushion effect. Packets only.
| Packet - $4.50 |
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NOT CURRENTLY AVAILABLE |
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Deschampsia elongata
Slender Hairgrass
One of the prettiest small native grasses. Graceful, fine-textured, bright-green perennial from partly-shaded, moist areas. Upright tufts green up early in spring, turn soft-gold in summer.
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Elymus californicus
California Bottlebrush Grass
A tall, robust grass with nodding brushlike spikes. Confined to coastal counties, it is a handsome grass found in both shaded banks and wooded areas, including redwood forests. Culms are 3-6' tall. Rare. Packets only.
| Packet - $4.50 |
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NOT CURRENTLY AVAILABLE |
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Elymus glaucus
Blue Wildrye
Tufted perennial 3-4 ft. tall, common in foothills and lower mountain slopes. Useful for forage early in season. Grows with oaks and conifers. Often used in revegetation. Makes excellent pinole. Light shade. Seeding rate: 8 lbs./acre.
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Festuca californica
California Fescue
Often used in landscaping, this grass is always striking, whether cascading down oak-dotted slopes or growing in manzanita forests. Blue-green bunchgrass with blades to 2', the bunches are wider than that, with graceful panicles rising above the blades. Drought tolerant and will grow in sun or shade. Broadcast sowing not recommended.
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Festuca idahoensis
Idaho Fescue, Blue Fescue
Densely tufted bunchgrass with fine basal foliage of a lovely blue-green, growing 2' tall. It is ranked highly as forage and is well known as an ornamental. Sun or shade. Larval food plant for lindsey's skipper butterfly. A stand of this grass makes a good place for a luxurious nap. Seeding rate: 8 lbs./acre.
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Festuca rubra
Red Fescue
Easy to grow and often used with wildflowers, this rich green to blue-green bunchgrass can withstand some shade and makes a lovely naturalistic "lumpy lawn" or soft bank cover. Adaptable to many soil types and situations. Bunching habit but also spreads through short rhizomes. Direct-sow or seed in flats.
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Hierochloe occidentale
Vanilla Grass, California Sweetgrass
A delight to encounter in coastal forests, this rich green 1.5' tall erect grass has delicate white flowers and a marvellous vanilla fragrance, particularly when dried. Likes semi-shade and some summer moisture. Packets only.
| Packet - $5.50 |
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NOT CURRENTLY AVAILABLE |
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Hordeum brachyantherum
California Meadow Barley
Tufted perennial 10-30" tall growing throughout California, from the mountain meadow to mesas above the sea. Seeding rate: 10 lbs./acre
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Koeleria macrantha
June Grass
An attractive bunchgrass with a rich green leaf color which is most abundant in the coast ranges but also high altitudes. Succulent forage for livestock, withstands heavy grazing. 1.5' tall. Grows in many different situations, including clay and rocky soils, shrubland, alpine, and woodland. Packets only. Seeding rate: 6 lbs./acre.
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Leymus triticoides
Creeping Wildrye
Rhizomatous native grass for the large landscape. Grows 2 to 4 ft. tall with upright spikes 8 in. long. Graceful, understated, "Oriental" effect. Likes some moisture but can do without. Easy, tough, and widespread.
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Melica torreyana
Torrey's Melic Grass
Good-looking melic grass growing to 2' tall in fine-textured clumps 1' wide. Found in chaparral and coniferous forest. Sun or part-shade. Goes dormant late summer. Packets only.
| Packet - $4.50 |
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NOT CURRENTLY AVAILABLE |
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Muhlenbergia rigens
Deergrass
Forms dense clumps 2' to 3' tall and equally wide. Excellent for erosion control on dry open ground. It is an important California Indian basket material. Used in landscaping all over the state, it is an adaptable, handsome grass making a strong design statement. Requires warmth to germinate. Broadcast seeding not recommended.
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photo by Arvind Kumar
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Nassella cernua
Nodding Needlegrass
In cultivation one of the most striking of the native bunchgrasses. Range similar to Nassela pulchra. In flower and seed, a stunning gleaming show of panicles, reaching to 2'. Seeding rate: 8-10 lbs./acre.
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Nassella lepida
Foothill Needlegrass
Fine basal leafage remains light green after annual vegetation has dried. This appealing grass grows from 1-2 feet tall with graceful drooping particles. It withstands shading and makes rapid growth after a fire. Seeding rate: 8-10 lbs./acre.
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Nassella pulchra
Purple Needlegrass
State Grass of California, one of major species of California grasslands. Valuable as erosion control and forage, needs protection from grazing during flowering period. Greens up early in season. Foliage to 1.5' tall, graceful flowering stalks to 2'. Larval food plant for the California ringlet butterfly. Seeding rate: 6-8 lbs./acre.
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An Introduction to Native Grasses
A key element in the ecology of our native flora. the native bunchgrasses have captured the imagination of plant-lovers of many different orientations. A crucial part of restoration ecology, they are also charming additions to the plant palette of the innovative garden designer.
Spending time in relic stands of bunchgrasses feels much like spending time in old-growth forest, and indeed, it is said that individual plants of some species may be 100-300 years old. The look and feel of native bunchgrass prairies is uniquely Californian. The third booklet in our "Notes" series, Notes on Native Grasses, gives background in-formation and practical planting instructions for these valuable Natives.
Unlike sod-forming lawn grasses, the native bunchgrasses, with their massive root systems, are useful as bankholders, as specimen plants, and as components of what we call "the grass garden." The native meadow acquires richness and structure when bunchgrasses are added, for once the annual wildflowers have gone to seed, the grasses will hold the soil and the eye.
Sowing Directions: One packet will sow 20 to 100 plants, depending on the species. Grasses available only by the packet, laboriously hand-collected, should be sown in flats, transplanted into pots, and then into the garden. Species available in bulk can be broadcast; that is, sown directly into the ground.
Seeding techniques for broadcast sowing are the same as for any seeds. Soil should be as free of weeds as possible. Soil amendments are usually not required. Seed should be covered to approximately twice the depths of the seed, either by raking into existing soil or adding 1/2" to 1" of soil or humus on top of seed. Tamp for good seed/soil contact. Keep evenly moist till seed germinates and makes good growth.
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