NativeSeed Group Inventory

Potentially long-lived nitrogen-fixing perennial legume with a significant taproot and purple flowers. Adapted to fertile, deep, well-drained soils. Intolerant of poor drainage, high water tables and acidic soils. The world’s most well-known and widely used perennial forage legume for pasture, hay, silage, green-chop and rangeland. Excellent forage yield, quality and palatability. Seed alone or in mixed grass pastures; establishes easily. High bloat potential; use caution when grazing. Also use for wildlife habitat for grazing ungulates, geese, grouse and other wild birds. Primarily pollinated by leafcutter bees and many types of native bees; honeybees are reluctant pollinators. Winter hardy, rhizomatous and multifoliate (MF) varieties available.

• Growing Region:  Midwest
• Blooms: 
• Life Form:  Legume

• Application Type:  Agricultural Conservation, Cover Crop
• Height:  1-3 ft

Formerly Elymus cinereus. Robust and very tall (4-8 ft.), Cool season, perennial bunchgrass. Very drought tolerant but also withstands periodic flooding. Occurs from dry sage communities to wet meadows, up to 9,800 ft. elevation. Deep fibrous root system helps it thrive on sub-irrigated sites. Alkaline and saline tolerant. Excellent soil binder. Provides outstanding wind cover, nesting habitat and winter feed for herbivores and wildlife above snow level.

• Growing Region:  Pacific Northwest
• Blooms: 
• Life Form:  Grass

• Application Type:  Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation
• Height:  4+ ft

Widely adapted, drought tolerant native perennial with yellow and red flowers, blooming April to September. Found in a variety of well-drained soils in grasslands, shrublands, open woodlands and mountain meadows; up to 10,000 ft. elevation. Tolerant of mild acidic to mild alkaline conditions. Establishes quickly and able to grow into large colonies, especially on disturbed sites. Fire resistant, increasing after wildfire. Competitive with weeds. Attracts numerous pollinating bees and butterflies; extensive bloom period. Foliage and associated insects are a food source for sage-grouse and sharp-tail grouse. Use in restoration, erosion control or beautification.

• Growing Region:  Pacific Northwest, Southwest, Intermountain West, Midwest
• Blooms:  Summer, Fall
• Life Form:  Forb

• Application Type:  Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation
• Height:  1-2 ft

Formerly Agropyron spicatum. Cool season, drought tolerant, long-lived perennial bunchgrass widely distributed and adapted to most sites including thin, non-productive soils. Extensive root system. Establishes quickly on a wide variety of soil textures, from rocky sites to clays. Intolerant of poor drainage and high water tables. Some tolerance to salinity. Cold hardy. Often a major component of native plant communities within its range. Generally good palatability to livestock and wildlife late into summer and fall. Stressed by overgrazing and repeated early season grazing. Preferred feed for elk, deer and antelope at peak times. Use for arid rangelands, erosion control and native habitat restoration.

• Growing Region:  Midwest, Southeast
• Blooms: 
• Life Form:  Grass

• Application Type:  Agricultural Conservation, Erosion Control, Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation
• Height:  1-2 ft

Cool season, long-lived, perennial sod-former adapted to wet or periodically wet soils such as meadows, waterways and ranges in the subalpine zone. Strongly rhizomatous. Withstands periodic flooding for up to 45 days. High forage producer compared to other grasses adapted to wet soils. More productive than Meadow foxtail (A. pratensis). Tolerates acidic and saline soils and is palatable and nutritious. Frequently used as pasture grass on wet meadows.

• Growing Region:  Pacific Northwest, Midwest
• Blooms: 
• Life Form:  Grass

• Application Type:  Agricultural Conservation, Erosion Control, Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation
• Height:  1-2 ft

• Growing Region:  Intermountain West
• Blooms: 
• Life Form: 

• Application Type:  Agricultural Conservation, Commercial Beautification
• Height: 

Formerly Stipa viridula. Cool season, long-lived, drought tolerant perennial bunchgrass with an extensive fibrous and deep root system. Important native species from the Northern Great Plains to Arizona. Performs well on a wide variety of sites, thriving on medium and fine textured bottomland soils but also tolerant of coarser sites. Moderately palatable to livestock and wildlife year-round. Use for native pasture, rangeland or for prairie habitat restoration. Occasionally slow to germinate and establish. Seedlings are slow to develop, but mature plants are vigorous.

• Growing Region:  California, Pacific Northwest
• Blooms: 
• Life Form:  Grass

• Application Type:  Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation
• Height:  1-4 ft

Formerly Festuca longifolia. Densely tufted, Cool season, long-lived perennial bunchgrass with a massive fibrous, shallow root system. Adapted to a wide range of soil conditions except for standing wet or strongly alkaline sites. Establishment is slow but persistent with mature stands being competitive. Good palatability to livestock and excellent for wildlife. Different varieties for either erosion control or turfgrass. (See Turfgrass section.)

• Growing Region:  Midwest, Pacific Northwest
• Blooms: 
• Life Form:  Grass

• Application Type:  Agricultural Conservation, Commercial Beautification, Erosion Control, Land Reclamation, Turf
• Height:  1-4 ft

• Growing Region:  Intermountain West
• Blooms: 
• Life Form: 

• Application Type:  Turf
• Height: 

Formerly Bromopsis biebersteinii. Cool season, perennial open sod-former with short rhizomes. Adapted to most sites where water is adequate but performs best on moderately deep, well-drained moist soils. Long-lived and very winter hardy. Primarily used as a pasture component in grass and grass-legume mixtures. Spring green-up is 2-3 weeks earlier than other common pasture grasses. Excellent year-round forage. Use in dryland pastures in areas receiving greater than 14 in. of annual precipitation. Varieties:  

• Growing Region:  Intermountain West, Southwest
• Blooms: 
• Life Form:  Grass

• Application Type:  Agricultural Conservation, Erosion Control, Land Reclamation
• Height:  1-4 ft

• Growing Region:  Intermountain West
• Blooms: 
• Life Form: 

• Application Type:  Agricultural Conservation, Commercial Beautification
• Height: 

Pubescent Wheatgrass is a long-lived, Cool-season perennial grass. It is a sod-former and spread by underground roots.AREA OF ADAPTATION: It is adapted to and used in the same areas as Intermediate Wheatgrass. It is slightly more drought, heat, and salt tolerant than intermediate, but somewhat less palatable. It is considered to have better stand ratings and persistence in sagebrush and pinon-juniper areas.PLANTING: Drill seed no more than 1 inch deep at a rate of 7 to 11 PLS per acre. Planting dates depend on the climate of the area and would be the same as other Cool-season species in the area.PLANTING DATES: March - June

• Growing Region:  Midwest
• Blooms: 
• Life Form:  Grass

• Application Type:  Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation
• Height:  4+ ft

Tall nitrogen-fixing perennial legume with hollow, succulent stems and pink-striped flowers. Large, deep branching taproot and fine lateral roots. Drought tolerant and winter-hardy. Low salt tolerance. Intolerant of high water tables and wet soils; long-lived on dryland when managed properly. Matures faster than Alfalfa (Medicago sativa), providing early spring forage. Quickly gaining popularity as a non-bloat forage alternative to alfalfa. Extremely palatable and highly nutritious; digestibility equal to alfalfa. Use for hay, pasture, rangeland or silage, alone or with grasses. Also use for wildlife habitat enhancement and food plots for elk, deer, pheasant and sage-grouse. Superior honey plant to alfalfa. Not invasive or weedy. 

• Growing Region:  Southwest
• Blooms:  Spring
• Life Form:  Forb

• Application Type:  Agricultural Conservation, Cover Crop
• Height:  1-4 ft

Introduced, hardy, long-lived perennial evergreen forb with dense pink to red petal-less flowers, blooming May to July; weakly rhizomatous. Cold tolerant and widely adapted, persisting on infertile well-drained soils with at least 12 in. annual precipitation; up to 9,000 ft. elevation. Excellent browse for livestock and wild ungulates until snow cover; also grazed by sage-grouse. Commonly used for pasture, rangeland, food plots, weed control, fuel breaks and green strips. Pollinated by bees

• Growing Region:  Intermountain West, Midwest, Pacific Northwest
• Blooms:  Spring
• Life Form:  Forb

• Application Type:  Agricultural Conservation, Cover Crop, Commercial Beautification
• Height:  1-2 ft

Formerly Agropyron smithii. Cool season, strongly rhizomatous, long-lived perennial. Widely adapted; saline-tolerant and moderately drought tolerant. Tolerant of some flooding, heavy soils and cold. One of the best known and most common native grasses in North America, occurring in numerous types of native plant communities. May be replaced by Thickspike wheatgrass (Elymus lanceolatus ssp. lanceolatus) on coarser soils. Moderately palatable to livestock and wildlife.

• Growing Region:  Pacific Northwest
• Blooms: 
• Life Form:  Grass

• Application Type:  Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation, Erosion Control
• Height:  1-2 ft