Panicum urvilleanum

Silky panic grass, Silky Panic Grass

Family: Poaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Silky panic grass is a California native perennial found in eastern Southern California and desert regions in sandy soils and dunes at elevations below 1,220 meters. Flowering from March to May, this grass produces green spikelets 5 to 7.5 millimeters long with delicate white-edged membranes. Growing 40 to 100 centimeters tall with spreading stolons or rhizomes, it forms graceful clumps with hairy stems. Its leaves are distinctive, with hairy sheaths 12 to 35 centimeters long and blades 20 to 45 centimeters long, 4 to 7 millimeters wide, with short hairs on the upper surface. The plant's inflorescences spread 20 to 35 centimeters, with spikelets arranged in elegant, branching clusters.

Habitat: Sandy soils, dunes

Bloom period: Mar-May

Elevation: < 1220 m

Bioregions: e SCo, D

California counties: Riverside, San Bernardino, Imperial, San Diego

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