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California needlegrass
Scientific Name: Achnatherum occidentale ssp. californicum
Family: Poaceae
Category: Monocot
Growth: Graminoid
Duration: Perennial
Other Names:
Purple Needlegrass: California's State Grass
Discover the beauty and resilience of purple needlegrass, a prominent feature of California's landscapes.
Scientific and Common Names
- Scientific Name: Nassella pulchra (Hitchc.) Barkworth
- Common Names: Purple Needlegrass, California Needlegrass, Nodding Stipa, Nodding Needlegrass, Purple Stipa, Purple Tussock Grass
Taxonomy and Nomenclature
- Family: Not explicitly mentioned in the text, but it is a grass.
- Synonyms/Alternative Names: Stipa pulchra, Stipa cernua (mentioned as an introduced grass native to California), Nassella cernua, Hesperostipa comata (though this might be a different species entirely)
Distribution and Habitat
- Native to California.
- Occurs throughout the coastal hills, valleys, and mountain ranges of California, as well as the Sacramento Valley.
- Found on the west side of the Coast Ranges from northern Baja California north to the Oregon border.
- Grows in Oak Woodland, Chaparral, and Grasslands habitats.
Ecological Role
- A major species in California grasslands.
- Once a dominant grass in native California grasslands before their decline.
Morphological Characteristics and Growth Habits
- Perennial bunchgrass.
- Tough basal leaves stay green most of the year.
- Showy awns.
Quirky Facts
- Purple needlegrass became the official California State Grass in 2004.
- It was a food source for native herds of ungulates (like Tule elk and mule deer) that once roamed California's grasslands.