Switchgrass - Panicum virgatum
 
- Upright landscape grass; lovely blue-green foliage turning bright yellow in fall
- Airy wheat-colored flowers appear in late summer with attractive seedbeds through winter
- Robust and care-free once established
 
Switchgrass, Panicum virgatum, often dismissed as a roadside weed in the Southeast, is a highly-beneficial native warm-season grass. In late summer, purple cloud-like seed heads emerge with tiny attractive flowers, turning golden in the fall. Songbirds and other wildlife thrive on the seedheads, and the Tawny-edge Skipper and the Delaware Skipper butterflies specifically use this species as a host plant. Tolerating full sun and partial shade, Switchgrass accommodates nearly all soil conditions and is a common component of restoration seed mixes. Reaching 6′ in height, this bunch grass was once a dominant grass of the former vast tallgrass North American prairie. In addition to being a prolific self-seeder, Switchgrass is clump-forming and rhizomatous so it should be used in landscapes where it is allowed to spread.