Melinda Myers

Big Bluestem

Botanical Name

Andropogon gerardii

Min Zone

3

Max Zone

9

Height

5 to 8 feet

Width

2 to 3 feet

Flowers

Late summer: 2 to 4 inch, purplish-red, 3-parted, finger-like, resembling a turkey foot

Fall Color

Reddish-bronze

Light

Full sun

Soil

Dry to medium

Planting & Care

• Tolerates a wide range of soil conditions
• Extensive root system that is slow to establish
• Excellent drought tolerance once established
• Cut back stems in late winter
• Provides food, cover and nesting sites to at least 24 species of songbirds
• Larval host to Delaware Skipper and Dusted Skipper butterflies