Home
Advanced Search Map Locator
View Settings
Nurseries Carrying this Plant Add Current Plant To List Edit Current Plant
Show all Photos

About Calscape Nurseries
California Garden Planner Bay Area Garden Planner (NEW) Planting Guide
Butterflies My Plant Lists
Contact Calscape
Tap map to see plants native to location
Order by Popularity Order by Common Name Order by Scientific Name Order by # of Butterflies Hosted
Show nursery cultivars Hide nursery cultivars
Show plants not in nurseries Hide plants not in nurseries
Grid view Text view
Loading....
Saltgrass
Distichlis spicata
  
33 Nurseries Carry This Plant

About Saltgrass (Distichlis spicata) 33 Nurseries Carry This Plant Distichlis spicata is a species in the Poaceae (Grass) family. This grass is native to the Americas, where it is widespread. It can be found on other continents as well, where it is naturalized, and in California it is found in virtually every county. D. spicata is a hardy perennial with rhizomes and sometimes stolons. it can form dense, monotypic stands. It is an erect grass which occasionally approaches half a meter in height but is generally shorter. It spreads to occupy suitable areas. The solid, stiff stems have narrow leaves up to 10 centimeters in length, which may be crusted with salt in saline environments, excreting salts from its tissues via salt glands. This species is dioecious, meaning the male flowers and female flowers grow on separate individuals. The pistillate flower cluster may be up to 8 centimeters long, with green or purple-tinted spikelets. The staminate flowers look quite similar, thinner but larger overall and denser. The flower parts of both sexes may be bright pinkish-purple. This plant grows easily in salty and alkaline soils. It is not often used in residential gardens but is valuable in restoration projects.
Plant Description
Plant Type
Plant Type
Grass

Size
Size
1.1 - 1.6 ft tall

Form
Form
Upright

Growth Rate
Growth Rate
Moderate, Slow

Flower Color
Flower Color
Yellow

Flowering Season
Flowering Season
Summer

Wildlife Supported
 
Several species of Skipper butterflies use this species as host plant. A number of birds and small mammals also utilize this plant.

 
Butterflies & moths hosted ( 5 confirmed , 2 likely * ) SHOW ALL
Polites sabuleti Image
Sandhill Skipper Polites sabuletiPolites sabuleti
Panoquina errans Image
Wandering Skipper Panoquina erransPanoquina errans
Pseudocopaeodes eunus Image
Alkali Skipper Pseudocopaeodes eunusPseudocopaeodes eunus
Atalopedes campestris Image
Sachem Atalopedes campestrisAtalopedes campestris
Copaeodes aurantiaca Image
Orange Skipperling Copaeodes aurantiacaCopaeodes aurantiaca
*
Hyles lineata Image
White-lined Sphinx Hyles lineataHyles lineata
*
Mythimna unipuncta Image
Armyworm Moth Mythimna unipunctaMythimna unipuncta

Landscaping Information
Sun
Sun
Full Sun

Moisture
Moisture
Moderate - High

Summer Irrigation
Summer Irrigation
Keep moist

Nurseries
Nurseries
Carried by 33

Ease of Care
Ease of Care
Moderately Easy

Cold Tolerance
Cold Tolerance
Tolerates cold to 0° F

Soil Drainage
Soil Drainage
Fast, Medium, Slow, Standing

Soil Description
Soil Description
Prefers sand or sandstone. Tolerates Saline Soil,Tolerates Sodic Soil. Soil PH: 5.0 - 8.5

Common uses
Common uses
Groundcovers, Butterfly Gardens

Companion Plants
Companion Plants
Use with other wetland and/or Salt tolerant species such as Seaheath (Frankenia salina), Goldenbush (Isocoma menziesii), bog rush (Juncus effusus), Sealavender (Limonium californicum), Marsh Fleabane (Pluchea odorata), Pickleweed (Salicornia sp.), and Cordgrass (Spartina foliosa)

Sunset Zones
Sunset Zones?
3, 4*, 5*, 6*, 7*, 8*, 9*, 10, 11, 12*, 13*, 14*, 15*, 16*, 17*, 18*, 19*, 20*, 21*, 22*, 23*, 24*

Natural Setting
Site Type
Site Type
Salt marshes, moist, alkaline places

Climate
Climate
Annual Precipitation: 2.2" - 76.3", Summer Precipitation: 0.14" - 2.47", Coldest Month: 20.3" - 61.4", Hottest Month: 52.6" - 90.7", Humidity: 0.01" - 49.06", Elevation: -229" - 8881"

Alternative Names
Common Names: Desert Saltgrass, Inland Saltgrass, Marsh Spikegrass, Seashore Saltgrass


Print Plant Sign Print Plant Label
Sources include: Wikipedia. All text shown in the "About" section of these pages is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Plant observation data provided by the participants of the California Consortia of Herbaria, Sunset information provided by Jepson Flora Project. Propogation from seed information provided by the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden from "Seed Propagation of Native California Plants" by Dara E. Emery. Sources of plant photos include CalPhotos, Wikimedia Commons, and independent plant photographers who have agreed to share their images with Calscape. Other general sources of information include Calflora, CNPS Manual of Vegetation Online, Jepson Flora Project, Las Pilitas, Theodore Payne, Tree of Life, The Xerces Society, and information provided by CNPS volunteer editors, with special thanks to Don Rideout. Climate data used in creation of plant range maps is from PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, using 30 year (1981-2010) annual "normals" at an 800 meter spatial resolution.

Links:   Jepson eFlora Taxon Page  CalPhotos  Wikipedia  Calflora


Sign in to your Calscape Account X




Once signed in, you'll be able to access any previously saved plant lists or create new ones.

Email Address
Password

Sign In