Hesperostipa comata
Encyclopedia
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.
is up to 28 centimeters long in taller plants, with the mature spikelet bearing a spiraling, hairy, spear-shaped awn up to 19 centimeters in length.
The seeds of this grass have hygroscopic extensions that bend with changes in humidity, enabling them to disperse over the ground. Each seed has an awn that twists several turns when the seed is released. Increased moisture causes it to untwist, and, upon drying, to twist again, thus the seed is drilled into the ground.
and black-tailed jackrabbits
, and the grass is a good early spring graze for livestock before it develops its long, sharp awn.
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Needle and thread grass is the provincial grass of the prairie province of Saskatchewan
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Poaceae
The Poaceae is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of flowering plants. Members of this family are commonly called grasses, although the term "grass" is also applied to plants that are not in the Poaceae lineage, including the rushes and sedges...
native to North America, especially the western third. It has a wide distribution spanning from northern Canada to Mexico.
Description
Hesperostipa comata is a perennial bunchgrass producing erect, unbranched stems to about a meter-3 feet in maximum height. The narrow inflorescenceInflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
is up to 28 centimeters long in taller plants, with the mature spikelet bearing a spiraling, hairy, spear-shaped awn up to 19 centimeters in length.
The seeds of this grass have hygroscopic extensions that bend with changes in humidity, enabling them to disperse over the ground. Each seed has an awn that twists several turns when the seed is released. Increased moisture causes it to untwist, and, upon drying, to twist again, thus the seed is drilled into the ground.
Habitat
This is a grass of many habitat types, from grassland to pine forest. Young shoots provide a favored food source for black-tailed prairie dogsBlack-tailed Prairie Dog
The black-tailed prairie dog , is a rodent of the family Sciuridae found in the Great Plains of North America from about the USA-Canada border to the USA-Mexico border. Unlike some other prairie dogs, these animals do not truly hibernate. The black-tailed prairie dog can be seen aboveground in...
and black-tailed jackrabbits
Black-tailed Jackrabbit
The black-tailed jackrabbit , also known as the american desert hare, is a common hare of the western United States and Mexico, where it is found at elevations from sea level to up to...
, and the grass is a good early spring graze for livestock before it develops its long, sharp awn.
Cultural
This species was described by the explorers during the Lewis and Clark ExpeditionLewis and Clark Expedition
The Lewis and Clark Expedition, or ″Corps of Discovery Expedition" was the first transcontinental expedition to the Pacific Coast by the United States. Commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson and led by two Virginia-born veterans of Indian wars in the Ohio Valley, Meriwether Lewis and William...
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Needle and thread grass is the provincial grass of the prairie province of Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
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External links
- Jepson Manual Treatment - Hesperostipa comata
- USDA Plants Profile; Hesperostipa comata
- Ecology
- Hesperostipa comata - Photo Gallery - Video of the awns twisting the seed into soil.