Big bluestem

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More names for this plant

The Dakota and Anishinaabe were among the earliest people to name Minnesota’s plants and animals, as well as to understand them in relation to Minnesota’s climate and seasons. Those original names are still in use, and several are included on the Season Watch website. However, complete translations were not available.

Latin (or scientific name): Andropogon gerardii

The scientific community has a convention of assigning agreed-upon Latin names to every kind of organism. Using scientific names helps people communicate confidently about the same organism and organize lifeforms based on how closely related they are.

More common names: Turkeyfoot, and turkey foot grass

Page contents

About big bluestem

Visual guide to phenology

More resources

A clump of big bluestem is growing in a grassland setting. Its seed heads are silhouetted against a partly cloudy sky.
Big bluestem growing in a grassland.
August 4, 2020, Chisago County, Minnesota
Photo © sofiewicklund, some rights reserved (CC-BY-NC)
iNaturalist observation

About big bluestem

  • Big bluestem is a native grass that grows up to eight feet in height.
  • This grass grows throughout Minnesota, but it does especially well in prairies in the southwest of the state. 
  • In late summer it produces coarse seed heads that are purple to red in color. 
  • The seed heads are made up of three spikelets that turn brown when they mature. 
  • Big bluestem is often used to control erosion and as forage for animals.

Visual guide to phenology

Watch for the appearance of leaves, flowers, and fruits. Take notice of when flowers open, pollen is released, and fruits ripen.

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Note to observers

This page explains general clues to watch for when observing big bluestem phenology. However, this page does not explain how to identify this plant or collect data in a standardized way.

The pale tan seed heads of a big bluestem plant are contrasted against a black glove. The seed head is branched and has a hairy texture.
Pale yellow stems are stiff and dry. They suggest that new leaves and stems will soon appear. The setting is open land along a railroad line.
Large, swooping leaves of big bluestem are green and tinged with a dusky red color near the tips.
Segmented spikes are branching off from the stem. They are still partly concealed by a sheath near the stem. The new spikes are dusky purple.
Stems of big bluestem are silhouetted against a partly cloudy sky. At the top of the stems are flower heads. Each flower head consists of two to six spikes.
This photo shows a single flower head at the top of a stem. Dangling from the spikes are slender yellow structures. Along the spike are tiny bristle-like structures.
Roughly resembling wheat, the fruits of big bluestem form in spikes. The small segments are many shades of dusky purple, rusty red, and tan.
At the top of a tan stem are two spikes. The spikes are segmented and a golden-orange in color. The spikes also have fine bristles that are nearly white.
The dead plant material appears brittle and slightly decayed. It is and golden-tan in color. One bristly seed head is pale gold in color. It looks as if the seed head is breaking up and has lost some segments.

More resources

Big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii) in the Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas

Big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii) in Nature's Notebook

Big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii) fact sheet by US Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service

 

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Co-author: Lynsey Nass, Minnesota Master Naturalist