Spike Dropseed
Sporobolus contractus
Family: Poaceae
Tufted, narrow, upright growing, perennial grass reaching about 3-4’ tall. Inflorescence appear August through October. This species is distinguished by being a perennial with tightly contracted inflorescences—meaning that the inflorescence is dense, cylindrical, and narrow. It is a spikelike series of many small whitish or grayish spikelets.
Full to part sun, best on irrigation. May volunteer in wet spots in landscape.
Large seeded and loved by granivorous birds.
Granivorous birds love the seeds. As with many grasses this plant acts as a larval host for many grass-specialist butterflies and moths, and the Sandhill Skipper (Polites sabuleti) particurlarly uses this grass. A fair to good forage grass.
Photo by Cecelia Alexander, iNaturalist
Sporobolus contractus on SEINET
The name for the genus comes from thje Greek words 'spora' meaning "seed" and 'ballein' meaning "to throw" alluding to the free seed and the manner of its release. The species, contractus, means contracted, referring to the inflorescence. There are 226 species of Sporobolus that grow in tropical, sub¬tropical, and warm-temperate regions throughout the world.
Found in dry, open, sandy or rocky slopes and washes, and frequent along roads from 2,500-6,500 ft. in the southwestern United States from California, Nevada east through Arizona and New Mexico to Texas and Oklanoma; south into central Mexico.
Detail imagery of the contracted inflorescence, photo by Sue Carnahan, SEINET
The typical landscape it is found in, in Utah. Photo by Cecelia Alexander, iNaturalist