Oh Little Bluestem I Love You, Yes I Do

Pockets of sandplain grasslands throughout the Vineyard turn a light mahogany color as the nights begin to cool in late summer. Katama Air Park in Edgartown, Trade Wind Fields Preserve in Oak Bluffs and the various fire trails that run through the Manuel F. Correllus State Forest are among the best places to take in the color.

Sandplain grasslands, which are most extensive on the Cape and Islands, as well as on Long Island, usually include a variety of grasses, wildflowers and shrubs. But it is the native grass little bluestem that creates the ochre hues in late summer and early fall, and in large part helps sustain the diversity of the grassland ecosystem.

By September little bluestem has reached its full height of about three feet, and has sent out seed heads. The flowering season lasts through November and the color lasts through most of the winter.

By October youve just got a beautiful cloud of seed going on, especially when its backlit, said Carlos Montoya, an Aquinnah resident who owns Native Plant Associates and specializes in seeding little bluestem meadows. Unlike other long grasses, which form carpets, little bluestem grows in clumps, which allows other species to grow around it. It is also one of the few North American plants to utilize the C4 photosynthetic pathway, which allows it to grow in dry conditions. Once its established, you can virtually walk away from it, Mr. Montoya said. And just when everything else is turning brown, this thing is in its glory.

Carlos Montoya of Aquinnah owns Native Plants Associates and specializes in seeding little bluestem meadows. Mark Lovewell

Much of its habitat on the Vineyard was created by grazing animals. Open spaces in the past were also created by fire and sometimes maintained through controlled burning. But farming has decreased since the early 1900s, along with an increase in fire suppression, and most open land on the Vineyard has reverted back to forest.

All of the habitat that requires full sun is getting smaller and smaller, Mr. Montoya said. And that means the gene pool, which is kind of the survival into the future that gets constricted too, since there is less and less seed being produced. So I think its really important to keep the different habitats in balance.

Mr. Montoya was involved in efforts by The Nature Conservancy and the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole to convert forested land on the Vineyards south shore to grassland and little bluestem beginning in 2001. As a result, the number of plant species in that area tripled from about 25 to 75 species.

Matt Pelikan, a Vineyard resident and coastal ecologist with The Nature Conservancy, said the plant also supports insect and bird species, which often prefer dispersed vegetation. The amount of energy that is stored in little bluestem plants is pretty considerable, he said. Some insects have life cycles tied to the little bluestem and many caterpillars feed on it exclusively. Its an important linchpin in the food web, Mr. Pelikan said.

He added that because little bluestem grows late in the season, it is useful in seed mixes for farm pastures. Then you have a mix of species thats diverse enough so there will be something growing actively at all points in the season, he said. A lot of the land management that weve done of conservation properties has been aimed at promoting sandplain grassland habitats, and little bluestem would be one of the key species that youd want to see be prominent in places like that.

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Oh Little Bluestem I Love You, Yes I Do