Calamagrostis canadensis var. langsdorffii

Family: Poaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Langsdorff's blue-joint grass is a native perennial grass found in the Klamath Ranges, high Cascade Range, and Sierra Nevada Mountains in moist meadows, thickets, peatland, and open woodland at elevations of 1,500 to 3,400 meters. Flowering from July to September, this grass produces delicate pale green to silvery-white flowering spikes with spikelets 4 to 4.5 millimeters long. Growing with slender, clustered stems that can reach up to one meter tall, it forms dense tufted clumps in moisture-rich mountain environments. Its narrow leaves are typically flat, light green, and grow in dense clusters along the stem, creating a soft, feathery appearance. The grass produces distinctive spikelets with scabrous glumes that have acuminate tips and projections along the keel, giving it a textured, intricate appearance.

Habitat: Moist meadows, thickets, peatland, open woodland

Bloom period: Jul-Sep

Elevation: 1500-3400 m

Bioregions: KR, CaRH, SNH

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.