Schizachyrium

There aren't many Schizachyrium available for gardeners in the UK, despite 60 species  worldwide. One North American species and its cultivated forms, S. scoparium is very garden worthy, with interesting glaucous to purple hues on the foliage and flowering stems. Deciduous and upright, with narrow branching sprays of flowers.

Tussock-forming species in this genus provide protected environments for the overwintering of beneficial insects such as ladybirds. In their native North America, leaves are the food plants for the larvae of skipper butterflies and the seeds are food for finches and sparrows; while evidence about these values over here is sparse, similar uses are quite feasible.