Plains Lovegrass

Scientific Name: Eragrostis intermedia A.S. Hitchc.
Common Name: Plains Lovegrass

Morphological Characteristics:

Habit- native warm season perennial grass reaching 55- 90 cm. tall; flowers June to November; reproduces by seed
Leaves- blades usually glabrous except for hairs above ligule, scabrous, or sparsely pilose, 15-20 cm long and 2-3 mm broad; sheaths glabrous except for pilose throat
and usually pilose margins
Inflorescence- open panicles 20-40 cm long, 15-30 cm wide; Branches accending to spreading; Spikelets ovate, acute to narrowly lancolate, compressed, 5-11 flowered,
the rachilla usually persistent
Fruit- caryopsis

Habitat and Range: Found on sand, clay, and rocky soil, often in disturbed areas, in all regions of Texas except the Pineywoods, Rolling Plains, and High Plains.

Conservation Use:

Why collect this plant? Texas Plant Materials Centers have identified this plant as having potential benefits to the following conservation practice standards: 645 Upland Wildlife Habitat Management; 550 Range Planting; 393 Filter Strip; and 342 Critical Area Planting. Your assistance in collecting this plant helps support the NRCS conservation practice standards which are employed daily to conserve the natural resources of Texas!

Centers Requesting Seed:

How to Collect Seed

1. Identify native plant stands in your area. You can go to the following websites for helpful photos http://plants.usda.gov or http://www.noble.org/imagegallery/index.html or www.wildflower.org
2. Determine if seed is mature. Mature seed is typically dry and will easily separate from the seed head.
3. Hand strip mature seed by grasping the bottom of the seed head then gently pulling away from the base of the plant. Deposit seed in a brown paper sack. Collect seed from a minimum of 30 to 50 plants.
4. Label each collection as it is made so collections do not get mixed up. Information required includes: Collector’s name, number of plants collected, location (parish, city, highway, GPS coordinates), site description (soil type, slope, plants growing in association).
5. Complete NRCS-ECS-580; Plant Collection Information Form and mail with collected seeds to the NRCS Plant Materials Center requesting the species.

E. Kika de la Garza Plant Materials Center
3409 N FM 1355
Kingsville, TX 78363

Helpful Tips

Look for superior plants that display differences in color, height, or forage abundance and record observations. Differences in growing site or location should be made into separate collections if they are separated by more than 1 mile between sites. Look for seedheads beginning to shatter seed as a sign of maturity. It may be easier to cut off seedheads with scissors, than to strip the small spikelets. The seed is so small that it is easy to lose. Sort out as much green leaf material as possible to avoid molding and damage to the seed.

Other Photos:

Plains Lovegrass

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NRCS Species for 2008 Plant Collections - Plains Lovegrass (PDF; 1 MB)