prairie cordgrass

Spartina pectinata

characteristics

Strong, erect to gracefully arching stems with dark green leaves. Long, one-sided, comb-like seed heads with white to rose-pink flowers bloom on the spikes. Dry, papery seeds are flat with barbed awns. In the fall this grass turns bright gold. Spreads by rhizomes (growing 1.5 - 3 m per year); may be invasive.

197,000seeds/pound; starts from seed, root, container

A word of caution: the serrated edges of the leaves can easily cut skin.

habitat

Floodplains, roadsides, ditches, marshes and streams.

uses

Seed for waterfowl, songbirds (rails and sparrows).
Provides cover for song birds and small mammals — habitat for muskrats.

Used by North American aboriginals and early settlers as thatching for lodges.

Forms a dense thatch which keeps out seed from other plants.