NativeSeed Group Inventory

This is an annual grass that grows between 1 to 2 feet tall. It is used for habitat restoration and as a cover crop. This grass prefers full sun and is typically found in grasslands, prairies, and disturbed areas.

• Growing Region:  Pacific Northwest, Intermountain West, California
• Blooms: 
• Life Form:  Grass

• Application Type:  Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation
• Height:  0-1 ft

Formerly Scirpus maritimus. Cool season, rhizomatous, perennial grasslike occurring in wet alkaline or saline soils in meadows, marshes or near waterways. Valuable for providing cover for waterfowl and shore birds. Recommended for reclamation of mud flats, bogs or other areas adjacent to shallow or stagnant water.  

• Growing Region:  California, Pacific Northwest, Southeast
• Blooms: 
• Life Form:  Grasslike

• Application Type:  Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation, Erosion Control
• Height:  1-4 ft

Cool season, stout, rhizomatous, native, grass-like perennial occurring in wet alkaline or saline soils in meadows, marshes or near waterways. Valuable for providing cover for waterfowl and shore birds. Recommended for reclamation of mud flats, bogs, or other areas adjacent to shallow or stagnant water.

• Growing Region:  Pacific Northwest, California
• Blooms: 
• Life Form:  Grasslike

• Application Type:  Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation
• Height:  1-3 ft

A blend of grass species designed to grow in difficult alkaline soil conditions. Alkaline soils are typically high pH clays (≥ 8.5) with poor particle structure and low capacity for water infiltration and drainage due to the presence of sodium carbonate. Use in either irrigated or dryland applications.

• Growing Region:  Pacific Northwest
• Blooms: 
• Life Form: 

• Application Type:  Agricultural Conservation, Forage & Pasture
• Height: 

Formerly Elymus angustus. Robust, Cool season, long-lived, perennial bunchgrass with short creeping rhizomes. Well adapted to loam and clay soils, drought tolerant and extremely salt and alkaline resistant. Excellent winter hardiness. Root system may extend to 14 ft. below the surface, making it useful for soil stabilization. Excellent forage, especially in winter when plants stand above the snow surface available for grazing. Nearly as productive as Tall wheatgrass (Thinopyrum ponticum) on saline soils.

• Growing Region:  Pacific Northwest, Intermountain West
• Blooms: 
• Life Form:  Grass

• Application Type:  Agricultural Conservation, Erosion Control, Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation
• Height:  1-4 ft

Cool season, rhizomatous, native perennial that occurs in wetlands, streambanks, marshes and ditches. Requires wet to moist soils; withstands periods of submersion. Grows rapidly. Important wetland food and habitat source for waterfowl, muskrats and deer throughout its range.

• Growing Region:  Pacific Northwest, Southeast, Midwest
• Blooms: 
• Life Form:  Grass

• Application Type:  Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation
• Height:  1-3 ft

Cool season, robust annual or short-lived perennial that may develop short rhizomes. Commonly occurs on wet sites such as ponds, swamps, ditch banks, shallow marshes and sloughs. Prefers clay soils; tolerant of saline soils. Shallow-rooted and able to colonize denuded wetland soils, making it excellent for riparian reclamation. Seeds are eaten by migratory birds. Palatable and frequently used for hay or grazing. 

• Growing Region:  Pacific Northwest, Intermountain West
• Blooms: 
• Life Form:  Grass

• Application Type:  Agricultural Conservation, Erosion Control, Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation
• Height:  1-3 ft

Moderate water requirements, full sun to partial shade. Bluish-purple flowers bloom April through July. Excellent palatability for wildlife and all classes of livestock. Native rhizomatous climbing perennial legume with purple flowers, blooming April to August. Very drought tolerant and widely adaptable, occurring in moist to dry soils of forest openings, meadows, shrublands and streambanks; up to 12,000 ft. elevation. Use for habitat restoration, mining reclamation, arid rangelands and roadsides. Increases following fire. Excellent palatability for all wildlife and ungulates. Important for native pollinators, including wild bees. Larval host of the Western blue tailed butterfly.

• Growing Region:  Midwest, Pacific Northwest
• Blooms:  Spring, Summer
• Life Form:  Forb

• Application Type:  Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation
• Height:  0-1 ft

Cool season, rhizomatous, native perennial grasslike common in many western states. Occurs in saturated soils of wet meadows and springs, from foothills to moderate elevations up to 9,000 ft. Often found on gentle slopes below seeps and on flat areas next to streams, sometimes in dense stands. Tolerates partial shade. Well-adapted to soils rich in organic matter but also to fine-textured saturated mineral soils. Useful for wetland and riparian restoration. 

• Growing Region:  Intermountain West, Pacific Northwest
• Blooms: 
• Life Form:  Grass

• Application Type:  Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation
• Height:  1-3 ft

Formerly L. multiflorum. Cool season, annual bunchgrass adapted to many sites where adequate water is available. Establishes quickly and easily. Highly palatable to livestock and wildlife. Excellent for temporary pasture or for early spring growth in a perennial pasture mix. Use in erosion control blends for quick, temporary cover. Also used for winter over-seeding of dormant Warm season Bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon) lawns in the south and southwest. Varieties listed below.

• Growing Region:  Pacific Northwest, Intermountain West
• Blooms: 
• Life Form:  Grass

• Application Type:  Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation
• Height:  1-4 ft

Sprawling summer native annual with golden orange-yellow flowers, blooming July to October after desert monsoons. Quick germination when moisture is available. Found along roadsides, sandy washes, mesas, disturbed areas and low spots, often in mass communities; up to 6,500 ft. elevation. Use in desert restoration and native gardens. Prolific seed producer; seeds eaten by birds. Visited by numerous bees, wasps, flies and butterflies. 

• Growing Region:  Pacific Northwest, Southwest, Intermountain West, Midwest
• Blooms:  Summer, Fall
• Life Form:  Forb

• Application Type:  Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation
• Height:  1-3 ft

Cool season, perennial grasslike species that occurs in saline and alkaline marshes, peat lands, plains and basins at low to middle elevations. Frequently grows with sedges and grasses but is often overlooked because of its slight stature. Poisonous to livestock.  

• Growing Region:  Pacific Northwest, California
• Blooms: 
• Life Form:  Grass

• Application Type:  Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation
• Height:  1-2 ft

Drought tolerant, long-lived perennial native with yellow sunflower-like flowers, blooming April to July. Deep, thick taproot tolerant of fire, grazing, trampling and drought; seedlings slow to establish. Prefers deep, fine to medium textured well-drained soils. Often found in large patches. Common in sagebrush communities as well as mountain shrub communities, woodlands and open forests; up to 10,000 ft. elevation. Thought to have potential for use in oil shale and mining reclamation. Valuable spring and summer forage for mule deer, elk, bighorn sheep and pronghorn. Attractive to native pollinators. Sage-grouse eat the young shoots and flower buds. 

• Growing Region:  Pacific Northwest, Intermountain West
• Blooms:  Spring, Summer
• Life Form:  Forb

• Application Type:  Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation
• Height:  1-3 ft

Moderate water requirement; full sun to part shade. Perennial with lavender to white flowers blooms June to September from mid-montane to subalpine, on open moist slopes, along streams and under aspens, spruce and fir. Also called Aspen fleabane. Native perennial with lavender to blue flowers and yellow centers, blooming June to September. Occurs on well-drained to clay soils in moist meadows, streambanks and openings of aspen, spruce and fir; up to 12,000 ft. elevation. Pollinated by native bees.

• Growing Region:  Pacific Northwest, Midwest
• Blooms:  Summer, Fall
• Life Form:  Shrub

• Application Type:  Habitat Restoration, Land Reclamation
• Height:  1-2 ft

Cool season, tall, native perennial grasslike. Grows in dense clumps. Widely distributed across the northern latitudes of the U.S. Adapted to seasonally flooded wetlands, marsh edges and sites with still or slow moving water, usually in full sun. Excellent seed producer; floating seeds are a visible food source for waterfowl. Useful in habitat restoration, wetland projects and detention basins.

• Growing Region:  Midwest, Pacific Northwest
• Blooms: 
• Life Form:  Grass

• Application Type:  Agricultural Conservation, Habitat Restoration
• Height:  1-3 ft