Blue grama belongs to the grass family, Poaceae.

• A warm season perennial that spreads from basal tillers, growing from 4 to 18 inches in height.
• Seed head can bear from one to three comb shaped, one sided spicate (arranged in a spike) branches, often resembling a human’s eyebrow.
• Bluish-purple at the juvenile stage and turns a straw color at maturity.
• Well adapted to dry sites, medium to fine textured soils in the rolling uplands, but abundant on plains and mesas.

Although it is a low productive grass, it is nutritious and palatable to wildlife and live stock. It is also commonly used in lawns due to its low maintenance and its drought resistance.

For a complete Refuge species list

For in-depth plant information
connect with the U.S. Dept Agriculture Plant Data Base

Last Updated: 1/14/09

Plants that grow naturally on this short grass prairie are called "native" plants. The Refuge has four major groups.

• Grasses
• Wildflowers
• Shrubs
• Trees

Vegetation on the Rocky Mountain Arsenal is a mixture of different grasses, shrubs. semi-shrubs, forbes and wildflowers.

Several species of prairie grass grow on the Refuge but the most common are the perennial BLUE GRAMA and WESTERN WHEATGRASS.

Learn more about prairie grasses at
FRONT RANGE LIVING.