Blonde Ambition Blue Grama

Blue grama (Bouteloua gracilis, Poaceae) is a warm-season native grass of the North American Great Plains, Rocky Mountains, and Midwest, ranging from Alberta to Mexico. It forms dense tufts of narrow, bluish-gray leaf blades (under 6 millimeters wide) reaching 6 to 12 inches tall. Distinctive comb-like seed spikes extend at sharp angles from flowering stems 18 to 46 centimeters tall, with 1 to 4 spikes per stem (usually 2). Foliage turns golden brown to orange-red in fall.

Blue grama thrives in full sun on a wide range of soils, from poor and rocky to clay, across pH 6.6 to 8.4, hardy in Zones 3a to 9b. It is highly drought tolerant, fire resistant, and handles salinity, shallow rocky soil, and black walnut proximity. Minimum root depth is 16 inches and precipitation tolerance ranges from 8 to 40 inches. Maintenance is low: cut to ground in late winter. It can serve as a lawn alternative when mowed to 2 inches. No serious pest or disease issues are documented. The cultivar 'Blonde Ambition' (PP22048) is the primary selection in the trade. Blue grama is a larval host for Garita skipperling and green skipper butterflies.