The Blues Little Bluestem Grass

For a wonderful little workhorse in the landscape, get your hands on The Blues Little Bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium ‘The Blues’). The Blues is a magnificent cultivar, chosen for its steely blue summer and blazing fall color. It effortlessly delivers rugged charm with a tidy, erect habit.

Ornamental Grasses bring welcomed added dimensions as they trace both the sight and sound of the wind. Use these soothing small plants near your seating areas or along the length of a path to lending a graceful symmetry. Watch and listen as the slightest breeze plays through the fine-textured blades and take a nice, deep breath.

This colorful plant features delicate foliage in a deep, cool-toned blue borne on rich reddish stems. The leaves deepen into a coppery hue for a fall color display that simply glows in the setting sun. Purple flowers rise above the canopy and develop into fluffy silvery seed clusters for early winter interest.

That rich wheat orange color from fall persists to brighten up the dormant winter season, an outstanding ornamental asset! It’s especially attractive when seen poking through a layer of winter snow.

Leave the pretty grass standing for winter to provide food for birds and cover for quail, turkeys, and ground-nesting birds. You’ll love the look.

This low-maintenance ornamental will grow just about anywhere and will tolerate poor soils. This all-around star performer is one of the most versatile perennial grasses one can plant. Order The Blues today!

How to Use The Blues Little Bluestem in the Landscape

This native American grass was once the dominant grass across prairies and open woods throughout most of North America. It suits nearly any garden style, from cottage gardens to Zen and modern or contemporary. The Blues is truly a classic in the landscape.

It tolerates everything from heavy clay to rocky, thin and poor soil. Use this deep-rooted perennial grass to stabilize a slope and prevent erosion.

Depending on where you live, you may have heard about this beautiful ornamental utility grass called Bunch Grass, Sage Grass, or Beard Grass. It has become a vital part of good soil conservation in modern landscapes. Use The Blues to recapture soil structure and provide erosion control, which is so important in drought-tolerant landscapes.

Because of its wide range of adaptability, the Little Bluestem is frequently seen in commercial landscapes, parks, and woodland planting. It absolutely shines in mass plantings used in meadows or prairie displays or in large areas as a fill plant for erosion control.

Plant at 2 feet on center for mass planting of a quick fill within two seasons. Measure from the center of one to the center of the next. You can either mow or trim in early spring.

Use The Blues Little Bluestem just about anywhere in your landscape. Edge a long border with these easy-care plants. Or, mix them into a perennial garden for a soft-textured accent.

#ProPlantTips for Care

This adaptable prairie grass grows best in full sun. However, it will easily grow in a wide range of soils, as long as they are well-drained. This includes fast-draining sandy soils and heavy clay soils.

The Blues laughs at high heat and humidity. It’s extraordinarily cold hardy. The plant is disease and pest-resistant as well as adapted to urban pollution problems.

Once established, they are drought tolerant and will require only occasional watering. Give young plants a regular amount of moderate water for the first season.

Please wait to trim them back until after you start seeing new growth. You’ll love the winter interest, and the birds will surely appreciate your thoughtfulness.

Once you see green growth emerging from the crown, cut them all the way down to the ground. This warm-season grass can be mowed, or hand-cut back to the ground in late winter or early spring. The new season of growth will fill out completely by April or May.

We always sell out of our yearly crop of The Blues Little Bluestem grass. Order right now if you see it in stock on the site. Otherwise, sign up for an email alert when the next crop is ready.