Stipa is a genus of around 300 large perennial hermaphroditic grasses collectively known as feather grass, needle grass, and spear grass. They are placed in the subfamily Pooideae and the tribe Stipeae, which also contains many species formerly assigned to Stipa, which have since been reclassified into new genera.
Dry–mesic prairie is a native grassland community made up mid-to-tall grasses and a diverse mixture of forbs. The sandy loam or loamy sand soils of Dry-mesic Prairie support grasses that are shorter and grow less densely than Wet-mesic and Wet Prairies. Big bluestem, little bluestem, Indian grass, and porcupine grass are the most abundant grasses in dry-mesic prairie.
Andropogon gerardi, commonly known as big bluestem, is a species of tall grass native to much of the Great Plains and grassland regions of central and eastern North America. It is also known as tall bluestem, bluejoint, and turkeyfoot.
Bouteloua gracilis, the blue grama, is a long-lived, warm-season (C4) perennial grass, native to North America.
Arrhenatherum elatius, with the common names bulbous oat grass, false oat-grass, tall oat-grass, tall meadow oat, onion couch and tuber oat-grass, is a species of perennial grass, native to Europe, western Asia, and northern Africa.
Nassella pulchra, basionym Stipa pulchra, is a species of grass known by the common names purple needlegrass and purple tussockgrass. It is native to the U.S. state of California, where it occurs throughout the coastal hills, valleys, and mountain ranges, as well as the Sacramento Valley and parts of the Sierra Nevada foothills, and Baja California.
Hesperostipa comata, commonly known as needle-and-thread grass, is a species of grass native to North America, especially the western third. It has a wide distribution spanning from northern Canada to Mexico.
Festuca idahoensis is a species of grass known by the common names Idaho fescue and blue bunchgrass. It is native to western North America, where it is widespread and common. It can be found in many ecosystems, from shady forests to open plains grasslands.
Tussock grasses or bunch grasses are a group of grass species in the family Poaceae. They usually grow as singular plants in clumps, tufts, hummocks, or bunches, rather than forming a sod or lawn, in meadows, grasslands, and prairies. As perennial plants, most species live more than one season. Tussock grasses are often found as forage in pastures and ornamental grasses in gardens.
Achnatherum latiglume is a species of grass known by the common names wide-glumed needlegrass,Sierra needlegrass.
Stipa speciosa (syn. Achnatherum speciosum is a species of grass known by the common name desert needlegrass. It is native to much of the south-western United States from California to Colorado, where it grows in dry areas, especially sagebrush habitat. It is also known from Mexico and parts of South America.
Piptochaetium avenaceum, commonly called black oat grass, blackseed needle grass or blackseed speargrass, is a species of perennial bunchgrass native to eastern North America. It is a member of the grass family Poaceae.
Achnatherum richardsonii is a species of grass known by the common names Richardson's needlegrass, spreading needlegrass, and Canada mountain-ricegrass. It is native to northwestern North America, where it is distributed from Alaska and Yukon through the western Canadian provinces south to Colorado.
Achnatherum thurberianum is a species of grass known by the common name Thurber's needlegrass. It is native to the western United States, where it occurs from Washington to California and east to Montana and Wyoming.
Carex inops is a species of sedge known as long-stolon sedge and western oak sedge. It is native to northern North America, where it occurs throughout the southern half of Canada and the western and central United States.
Leucopoa kingii is a species of grass known by the common names spike fescue and King's fescue. It is native to the western United States from Oregon and California east to Nebraska and Kansas.
Nassella cernua is a species of grass known by the common name nodding needlegrass.
Nassella leucotricha is a species of grass known by the common names Texas wintergrass, Texas needlegrass, and Texas tussockgrass. It is native to the south-central United States and much of Mexico.
Themeda quadrivalvis is a species of grass known by the common names grader grass, habana grass, and kangaroo grass, not to be confused with Themeda triandra, which is also known as kangaroo grass. It is native to India, Nepal, and Malaysia. It can also be found in many other places as an introduced species and often a noxious weed. It occurs in the United States, New Caledonia, Fiji, Mauritius, Thailand, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, China, the Middle East and tropical America. It is a troublesome exotic weed in Australia, especially in northern regions. It is also an agricultural weed in crops such as sugar cane and lucerne.
Nassella lepida is a species of grass known by the common names foothill needlegrass, foothills nassella, foothill stipa, small-flowered stipa, small-flowered needlegrass, and smallflower tussockgrass.
