Tripsacum dactyloides
Eastern Gamagrass
Please register or login to build your personal plant list.Eastern Gamagrass is a warm-season bunchgrass, which displays purple female flowers and orange male flowers on the same plant (monoecious),...
Description:
Eastern Gamagrass is a warm-season bunchgrass, which displays purple female flowers and orange male flowers on the same plant (monoecious), May-September. It is a host plant for butterfly and moth larvae (caterpillars), including Byssus Skipper (Problema byssus). Deer eat the seeds. Cut back Eastern Gamagrass to 8 inches in the winter, after the foliage has died back from frost. Use it in woodland gardens, perennial borders, meadows, or naturalized areas in your yard.
Plant Details:
Other Common Names: Gamma Grass, Fakahatchee Grass
Plant Type: Grass
New Jersey Native: Yes
Bloom Times: Late Spring to Early Summer, Summer, Late Summer to Fall
Bloom Colors: Orange, Purple
Deer Resistance: Some
Attracts Pollinators and Wildlife: Butterflies, Birds
Salt Tolerance: Low to None
Hardiness Zone: 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b
Physiographic Region: All Regions in NJ
Soil Characteristics
Soil Type: Loam, Organic, Sandy, Clay
Soil Moisture: Dry, Moist
Soil pH: Acidic, Slightly Acidic, Neutral
Light Needs of Plant
Optimal Light: Full Sun
Light Range: Full Sun, Partial Shade
Water Needs of Plant
Soil Moisture: Dry, Moist
Drought Tolerance: Low
Size and Growth Rate
Height: 4 - 8 ft
Spread: 4 - 6 ft
Growth Rate: Fast