CAUCASIAN BLUESTEM
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Bothriochloa bladhii   (Retz. ) S.T. Blake
[=Andropogon bladhii Retz.]
[=Bothriochloa caucasica  (Trin. ) Hubb., C.E.]
Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas
Perennial
Height: 2 to 3 feet
Family: Poaceae - Grass Family
Flowering Period:   July, August, September,October
Also Called: Australian bluestem, australian beardgrass.
Culms: Erect, slender, solid, glabrous, grooved on 1 side, bearded or glabrous at nodes.
Blades: Flat or rolled outward, linear-lanceolate, 2-15 inches long, less than 1/4 inch wide, glabrous, midrib prominent; tips tapered to fine points.
Sheaths: Glabrous, slightly keeled.
Ligules: Inconspicuously fringed membrane.
Inflorescences: Panicles, elongate, 2.5 to 6 inches long, pale green to purplish, axis longer than branches; branches slender, whorled, sometimes re-branching; rachis joints soft-hairy.
Spikelets: In pairs; sessile spikelets perfect, somewhat hairy at bases, slightly larger than stalked spikelets; fertile lemmas with awns 1/2 to 3/4 inch long.
Habitat: Waste ground, roadsides, and pastures, more abundant on heavy-textured soils.
Distribution: Scattered in east three fourths of Kansas.
Origin: Naturalized from Australia and South Asia.
Forage Value: Occasionally planted for forage, but of only fair value.
Comments: Tufted grass that is invasive and can become a serious weed issue. Tolerates drought conditions. The leaves have a turpentine-like odor when crushed.
Caucasian bluestem inflorescence
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Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas
Caucasian bluestem anthers and stigmas
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Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas
Caucasian bluestem collar and ligule
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Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas
Caucasian bluestem
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Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas
Caucasian bluestem
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Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas
Caucasian bluestem inflorescence
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Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas
Caucasian bluestem
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Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas