particularly along the mid-Atlantic and perhaps extending into the North 

 Atlantic region. It has been grown successfully as far north as Rhode 

 Island (Jagschitz and Bell, 1966a) and is indigenous along the Atlantic 

 coast from Connecticut southward [Palmer, 1975) . Although a warm season 

 grass, it is resistant to the common pests of American beachgrass. The 

 plant should not be substituted for American beachgrass in this region 

 but rather added as a safeguard against total loss in the case of insect 

 or disease attack. Bitter panicum cannot withstand as high a sand accre- 

 tion rate as American beachgrass but it has a better tolerance to sand 

 starvation. 



1 Planting Methods . Planting should be the same as 

 for American beachgrass. 



2_ Depth . Plants should be set 20 to 25 centimeters 

 deep in firm, moist sand, and 30 to 35 centimeters deep in loose, dry 

 sand. Machine planting is preferable, where possible. 



3 Planting Date . This plant can be planted the same 

 as American beachgrass, and into late spring and early summer if moisture 

 is favorable. However, since it is a summer grower, it probably should 

 not be planted in this region before April to avoid long exposure to 

 storm activity before the initiation of new growth. 



4 Planting Stock . Bitter panicum has two types of 

 stems (culms). Mature primary stems develop during the summer and are 

 the only material available for transplanting in winter and in early 

 through mid-spring. These tend to be hard and brittle, and may be 1 

 meter or more in length. Tillers are young, growing succulent stems 

 with green leaves and are usually smaller than primary stems. Primary 

 stems must be used during the late winter and spring until new tillers 

 become available. Primary stems make satisfactory planting stock but 

 behavior tends to be more erratic. Some plants remain dormant for some 

 time after transplanting while others begin growing earlier. However, 

 young tillers grow with little delay and are preferred when available. 



The larger primary stems survive and grow better than small primary 

 stems. Large stems are usually longer than needed and may be cut in half 

 to form two transplants per stem with no consistent difference in survival 

 between the top and bottom halves. Stems are usually harvested by hand 

 pulling. Brittle, primary stems usually break off at the surface, but 

 tillers will pull up with some roots and rhizomes attached. Presence or 

 absence of roots on planting stock does not affect survival. 



5_ Spacing . Bitter panicum is not suitable for planting 

 in pure stands in this region, except in spots where American beachgrass 

 has been killed by insects or disease. In such cases, a spacing of 30 to 

 60 centimeters, depending on the degree of exposure, would be appropriate. 

 Bitter panicum transplants should be substituted for a small proportion 

 (10 to 20 percent) of American beachgrass plants and planted in the same 

 planting pattern as the American beachgrass. 



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