Andropogon stolonifer (Nash) Hitchc., creeping bluestem 
DESCRIPTION 
Warm-season, rhizomatous perennial. 
Height : 2 to 6 feet. 
Leaf blade: 1/4 to 3/8 inch wide; often 2 feet long; V-shaped 
or flat; abruptly tapered at tip. 
Leaf sheath: Strongly flattened; often light purplish at 
base ; upper part of sheath, collar, and lower part of blade 
very hairy. 
Stem: Solitary or few. 
Seedhead: Several racemes, each 1 to 1-1/2 inches long, 
droop slightly at maturity; seedhead commonly 1 to 2 feet 
long. 
GROWTH CHARACTERISTICS 
Rhizomes grow actively in December and January, 12 to 14 
inches in a single season. New leaf growth starts in January and 
February. Leaves stay green as long as 17 months. Basal leaves 
are usually only 4 inches long in 4 to 5 weeks. Forms dense colo- 
nies. Grows best in open areas but tolerates 25- to 30-percent 
shade. Pure stands yield about 2 tons of air-dry forage per acre. 
Seed production is uncertain and erratic. 
DISTRIBUTION 
Throughout Florida and southern Georgia. 
SITE ADAPTATION 
Grows on a wide variety of soils in the sandhills and sweet and 
acid flatwoods. 
USE AND MANAGEMENT 
Creeping bluestem is readily grazed by livestock every month 
of the year. It retains its nutritive value and stays green during 
winter. 
Where saw palmetto has been controlled by double chopping 
with heavy rolling cutters, creeping bluestem is one of the first 
plants to become reestablished if grazing is deferred 6 to 8 
months following treatment. Plants are weakened if more than 50 
to 60 percent of current year’s growth by weight is grazed off. 
31 
