Andropogon tener (Nees) Kunth, slender bluestem 
DESCRIPTION 
Warm-season, perennial bunch grass. 
Height: 1 to 3 feet; often found reclining or lying flat on 
ground. 
Leaf blade: Narrow; 2 to 8 inches long; 1/16 inch wide or 
less ; wiry. 
Leaf sheath: Rounded; smooth; mostlyvbasal. 
Ligule: Hairy. 
Stem: A bend at each node gives zigzag appearance; often 
branches at nodes. 
Seedhead: Single straight spikelike raceme on each seed- 
stalk; seed shatter soon after maturity, leaving a tiny hol- 
low tip on each stalk. 
GROWTH CHARACTERISTICS 
Growth starts in early spring and continues into summer. Seed- 
heads generally form by mid -July. In fall and winter, foliage tan- 
gles, mats together, and turns a faded straw color. Grows in colo- 
nies. Slender bluestem is not as shade tolerant as many associated 
grasses. 
DISTRIBUTION 
Dry, pine woodlands and open lands of southern Coastal Plain 
from east Texas to Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and North 
Carolina and in southeastern Oklahoma. 
SITE ADAPTATION 
Best adapted to open or sparsely wooded, poorly drained soils. 
Also found on sandy well-drained soils. 
USE AND MANAGEMENT 
Although slender bluestem is not one of the preferred forage 
grasses, cattle graze it when it is young and tender. New growth 
following a burn is the most palatable. As seedstalks form, pal- 
atability declines rapidly. It is an indicator of excessive grazing. 
Grazing practices should favor the broader leafed, more palat- 
able grasses rather than slender bluestem. Heavy grazing for a 
short period after spring growth starts followed by a 6-month 
grazing deferment and light use make it possible for later matur- 
ing grasses such as pinehill bluestem to shade out slender blue- 
stem and dominate the site. Slender bluestem increases if burned 
annually and grazed continuously. 
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