Alternate Name

Saltmarsh chloris, Chloris glauca

Uses

Saltmarsh fingergrass is grazed readily by cattle, horses, and sheep.

Status

Please consult the PLANTS Web site and your State Department of Natural Resources for this plant’s current status, such as, state noxious status and wetland indicator values.

Description

Grass Family (Poaceae). Saltmarsh fingergrass is a native, warm‑season, perennial bunch grass. The height ranges from 3 to 4 feet. The leaf blade is folded 12 to 14 inches long, rounded at tip and dark green. The leaf sheath is crowded at the base, keeled, overlapping, and merges into the blade without a distinct collar. The ligule is a minute fringe of hairs. The seedhead has 15 to 20 spikes, each 4 to 5 inches long and the spikelets are brown, all on one side of rachis.

Distribution: For current distribution, please consult the Plant Profile page for this species on the PLANTS Web site.

Management

Continuous close grazing easily kills this grass. For maximum production and spread, graze it properly at all times and defer grazing every 2 to 3 years for at least 90 days throughout the growing season.

Establishment

Growth starts early in the spring and continues through the summer. It makes good regrowth. Growing points are 3 to 4 inches above ground early in the season. It produces seed two to three times during a long growing season. In southern Florida, parts of the plant stay green all year. It is adapted to coastal flatwoods, swamp margins, and sloughs on calcareous soils, thous it grows best in brackish marshes.

Cultivars, Improved and Selected Materials (and area of origin)

Please contact your local NRCS Field Office.

Reference

Leithead, H.L., L.L. Yarlett, & T.N. Shiflett. 1976. 100 native forage grasses in 11 southern states. USDA SCS Agriculture Handbook No. 389, Washington, DC.

Prepared By & Species Coordinator:

Percy Magee, USDA NRCS National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Edited: 13may02 ahv; jul03 ahv; 20sep05 jsp; 070116 jsp

For more information about this and other plants, please contact your local NRCS field office or Conservation District, and visit the PLANTS Web site<https://plants.usda.gov> or the Plant Materials Program Web site <https://Plant-Materials.nrcs.usda.gov>

Attribution: U.S. Department of Agriculture