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Products > Bouteloua gracilis
 
Bouteloua gracilis - Blue Grama Grass

San Marcos Growers has permanently closed as a business. This is an archived page preserved for informational use.  
Image of Bouteloua gracilis
 
Habit and Cultural Information
Category: Grass
Family: Poaceae (Gramineae) (Grasses)
Origin: California (U.S.A.)
California Native (Plant List): Yes
Flower Color: Wheat
Bloomtime: Summer
Synonyms: [Chondrosum gracile]
Height: <1 foot
Width: <1 foot
Exposure: Full Sun
Irrigation (H2O Info): Low Water Needs
Winter Hardiness: < 0 °F
Bouteloua gracilis (Blue Grama) A long-lived warm season tufted perennial grass with fine-textured gray-green leaves from 6 to 12 inches tall with dainty flowers held horizontally like small purple flags on stems that rise above the foliage in early summer and hold seed heads into fall. Plant in full sun in most any soil so long as it is well-drained. Water occasionally to very little - plants fill in faster and look best when irrigated but this is a drought tolerant grass and is very cold tolerant. Blue Grama, also called Mosquito Grass, is native to much of North America from Manitoba Canada south and west across the Rocky Mountains, Great Plains, and Midwest states to Mexico. Some recent sources (2013), including The Plant List (the collaboration between the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew and Missouri Botanic Gardens), list the current name of this plant as Chondrosum gracile, while other reputable sources, such as the Jepson Project (the Bible of all plants Californian) and the Flora of North America list the current name as Bouteloua gracilis, so we are sticking with the familiar name until such time as this name change get much wider recognition. 

The information displayed on this page about Bouteloua gracilis is based on our research conducted about this plant from books in our nursery library as well as from information that is provided by reliable online resources. We also have included our own observations made about it as it grew in the nursery gardens and other gardens visited, as well how the crops of this plant performed in the containers when we had them in our nursery field. We also include comments received from others and welcome hearing from anyone who has information about this plant, particularly if it includes cultural information aiding others to better grow it.

 
We closed for regular business at the end of 2025 in order for the property to be developed for affordable housing.
Our gates remain closed but we will open them by appointment to interested parties as we liquidate remaining supplies and equipment.
 
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