Purple Needle Grass

Our featured plant in the What’s Happening in Our Watershed project for January is Purple Needle Grass, which you can find on our campus at Willow Ave. Seasonal rains green our Januaries with emerging grasses. Though most grasses are now introduced annuals, less common native perennial bunchgrasses such Purple Needle Grass (Stipa pulchra) also emerge each year from a network of hidden living roots that have silently been preparing for the new year. Drought-tolerant needle grasses are named for their slender, delicate, long florets that can extend several inches at the tips of the grass. Roots enrich and protect soils from erosion and above ground parts have been used by indigenous peoples for basket weaving.

The line drawing below was created by Mady Neufeld. You’re welcome to print out and color the image below. You can also download the file here. For additional information, including photographs and range maps, visit Calscape.