Prairie Sandreed Plant Guide - Plant Materials Program
Prairie Sandreed Plant Guide - Plant Materials Program
Prairie Sandreed Plant Guide - Plant Materials Program
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PRAIRIE SANDREED<br />
Calamovilfa longifolia (Hook.)<br />
Scribn.<br />
<strong>Plant</strong> Symbol = CALO<br />
Contributed by: USDA NRCS Bismarck, North<br />
Dakota and Manhattan, Kansas <strong>Plant</strong> <strong>Materials</strong><br />
Centers<br />
<strong>Plant</strong> <strong>Guide</strong><br />
while available carbohydrates increase from 45<br />
percent in May to 55 percent in November (Craig,<br />
2002). <strong>Prairie</strong> sandreed is usually considered a<br />
decreaser with grazing pressure, but will initially<br />
increase under heavy grazing use, especially if<br />
growing within a big bluestem/sand bluestem plant<br />
community. <strong>Prairie</strong> sandreed generally is seeded as a<br />
component of a native mix for range seeding on<br />
sandy sites.<br />
Wildlife Value: <strong>Prairie</strong> sandreed provides fair forage<br />
for grazing and browsing wildlife in early spring and<br />
summer. The plant becomes more important in late<br />
fall and winter as the plant cures well on the stem and<br />
provides upright and accessible forage. Seed is used<br />
by songbirds and small rodents.<br />
Erosion Control: The rhizomatous growth habit and<br />
extensive fibrous root system of prairie sandreed<br />
makes it an excellent species for stabilization of<br />
sandy sites. On the shores of the Great Lakes it<br />
provides wind erosion control, dune stabilization, and<br />
water quality improvement.<br />
Status<br />
Please consult the PLANTS Web site and your State<br />
Department of Natural Resources for this plant’s<br />
current status (e.g., threatened or endangered species,<br />
state noxious status, and wetland indicator values).<br />
© Mike Haddock Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses<br />
Alternate Names<br />
sand reed, prairie sandgrass, big sandgrass<br />
Uses<br />
Grazing/rangeland/hayland: <strong>Prairie</strong> sandreed is a<br />
native, sod forming, warm season grass commonly<br />
found on sandy rangeland sites throughout the<br />
Central and Northern Plains and Great Lakes Region.<br />
This grass is recognized as a key species in grazing<br />
programs because of its abundance, yield potential<br />
and distribution of herbage production during the<br />
growing season. <strong>Prairie</strong> sandreed begins growth<br />
earlier in the spring than most warm season perennial<br />
grasses, thus its herbage is available for livestock<br />
grazing. The forage value is considered fair to good<br />
for cattle and horses, and fair value for sheep during<br />
its first two months of growth, and after it cures on<br />
the stem for fall and winter grazing. Crude protein<br />
content and available carbohydrates are inversely<br />
related in this plants constitution. Crude protein drops<br />
from 16 percent in May to 4 percent in November<br />
Description<br />
General: Grass Family (Poaceae). <strong>Prairie</strong> sandreed is<br />
a tall, coarse, stemmy, open sod forming grass found<br />
on sandy soil sites in typically low precipitation<br />
zones. Its coarsely fibrous root system augmented by<br />
scaly, spreading rhizomes produces an effective sand<br />
binding species. The culms are 1.0 to 1.5 meters (3-5<br />
feet) tall, arising singly and are attached to the stout,<br />
spreading rhizomes. Leaves are mostly cauline, pale<br />
green to straw colored. Leaf blades are rigid, flat to<br />
rolled, hairless, 30 cm (12 inches) long or longer,<br />
tapered to a drawn out tip. The ligule is short and<br />
hairy and the collar is hairy inside. Inflorescence is a<br />
panicle 15 to 35 cm (6-13 inches) long, semi-open<br />
and wider in the middle. Spikelets are pale, shiny,<br />
and one flowered. The lemmas are awnless and<br />
densely hairy at the base. It flowers from August to<br />
September and, and like most grasses, is wind<br />
pollinated. <strong>Prairie</strong> sandreed possesses the C-4<br />
photosynthetic pathway for carbon fixation (Waller<br />
and Lewis, 1979).
Distribution: For current distribution, please consult<br />
the <strong>Plant</strong> Profile page for this species on the<br />
PLANTS Web site.<br />
Habitat: <strong>Prairie</strong> sandreed is native from Manitoba to<br />
Quebec, Canada and south to Idaho, Colorado,<br />
Kansas and Indiana. Optimal performance can be<br />
expected on a sandy textured soil in the 40 to 50 cm<br />
(16-20 inch) rainfall zone. It exhibits strong drought<br />
tolerance when well established. It is intolerant of<br />
high water tables and early spring flooding.<br />
Steve Hurst, From PLANTS, provided by ARS Systematic Botany<br />
and Mycology Laboratory.<br />
Adaptation<br />
<strong>Prairie</strong> sandreed is drought tolerant and adapted to<br />
mean annual precipitation of less than 25 cm up to 50<br />
cm (10-20 inches). It is predominately found growing<br />
in clumps or colonies on coarse or sandy soil types. It<br />
will grow on soils that are somewhat alkaline, but it<br />
is not tolerant to salt. <strong>Prairie</strong> sandreed occurs<br />
naturally in mixed native stands with sand bluestem<br />
Andropogon hallii, little bluestem Schizachyrium<br />
scoparium, and sand lovegrass Eragrostis trichodes<br />
on choppy sand range sites. Several shrubs, including<br />
yucca Yucca glauca and sand sage Artemisia filifolia<br />
and a variety of forbs occur intermixed on these sites.<br />
It has been found growing on blow out sites in the<br />
Nebraska Sandhills.<br />
Establishment<br />
Propagation of Calamovilfa longifolia is<br />
accomplished by seed and vegetative means. Maun<br />
(1981) studied germination and seedling<br />
establishment on Lake Huron sand dunes at Pinery<br />
Provincial Park, Ontario. Seedling establishment is<br />
considered risky on sand dunes where high soil<br />
surface temperatures, low nutrient supply, low<br />
moisture availability, and erosion can limit seedling<br />
establishment and growth. Maun (1981) found that<br />
Calamovilfa longifolia produces large numbers of<br />
intermediate size seed (mean seed weight 1.64 mg +<br />
.14 mg standard deviation). He further noted that the<br />
endosperm of sandreed exhibited a dimorphic color<br />
scheme (brown and white) and that the brown<br />
endosperm types were significantly heavier than the<br />
white types. Maun’s (1981) seed germination studies<br />
indicated that the best germinations of Calamovilfa<br />
were produced when growth chamber settings were<br />
25 degrees C (14 hours) and 10 degrees C (10 hours).<br />
Temperatures higher (35 and 20 degrees C) and<br />
lower (15 and 0 degrees C) than those reduced<br />
germination significantly. Stratification of sandreed<br />
seed did not improve total germination, but it<br />
produced a faster rate of germination overall.<br />
Maun and Riach (1981) studied sand deposition<br />
effects on seedling emergence at field sites and<br />
greenhouse plantings. They found that seedling<br />
emergence from greater than 8.0 cm (3 inch) depths<br />
was not probable. Excavation of sites with seed<br />
buried by more than 8 cm (3 inch) of sand indicated<br />
that seed had germinated, but failed to emerge from<br />
that depth. Thus seedling emergence was negatively<br />
correlated with planting depth. Therefore, planting of<br />
prairie sandreed should be accomplished with a drill<br />
equipped with depth bands to better control depth of<br />
seeding. Seed should be planted at a depth of 2.54 cm<br />
(1 inch) on coarse textured soils and 1.27 cm (1/2<br />
inch) or less on medium to fine textured soils.<br />
Seedbed preparation should provide a weed free, firm<br />
surface on which to plant. Seedling vigor is only fair<br />
and stands develop rather slowly. Stands may require<br />
as long as two to three years to fully develop.<br />
Seeding rate will vary by region and may be<br />
influenced by the amount of processing provided by<br />
the seed producer. Some seed vendors process the<br />
seed down to the bare caryopsis. This will influence<br />
the seeding rate that is utilized.<br />
Management<br />
Mullahey et al. (1991) found that a June and August<br />
defoliation of prairie sandreed over a three year<br />
period produced the greatest dry matter yield<br />
compare to other treatments and the control.<br />
Generally annual dry matter yields declined for all<br />
defoliation treatments and the control during the three<br />
year study. Burlaff (1971) concluded that the<br />
concentration of crude protein in prairie sandreed<br />
declined with increased maturity of the forage. Dry<br />
matter digestibility also declined with advanced<br />
maturity of the plants. In similar studies Cogswell<br />
and Kamstra (1976) found that highly lignified<br />
species had lower in vitro dry matter digestibility<br />
values. Protein content of prairie sandreed decreased<br />
with maturity of the plant. Aase and Wight (1973)<br />
proved that water infiltration rates on undisturbed<br />
prairie sandreed were significantly higher and<br />
averaged about four times those on undisturbed<br />
surrounding vegetation. The duo attributed the<br />
greater infiltration rate in prairie sandreed colonies to<br />
the vigorous growth and resultant residue which<br />
intercepts rain drops and reduces the energy with<br />
which the rain impacts and seals the soils surface.<br />
They also discussed the effect of soil texture on<br />
infiltration rates and noted that coarse textured soils<br />
had higher infiltration rates. Total water use during<br />
the growing season was higher by prairie sandreed<br />
than by the surrounding vegetation, however dry<br />
matter production was twice as great. Production data<br />
collected at Pierre, SD reported prairie sandreed
(ND-95) production at 5,912 kg/ha (5,279 lbs/acre) of<br />
forage compared to 6,667 kg/ha (5,953 lbs/acre) for<br />
big bluestem (‘Bison’) at the same location. <strong>Prairie</strong><br />
sandreed responds positively to prescribed spring<br />
burns.<br />
Pests and Potential Problems<br />
Grasshopper infestations can damage seedlings.<br />
Gophers have been known to undercut, smother and<br />
utilize the forage. Leaf rust (Puccinia amphigena<br />
Dietel.) was identified as a potential antiquality factor<br />
in the forage production of prairie sandreed. Mankin<br />
(1969) also identified leaf mold (Hendersonia<br />
calamovilfae Petr.), leaf spot (Septoria calamovilfae<br />
Petr.) and rust as plant pathogens that can affect<br />
prairie sandreed plants. <strong>Prairie</strong> sandreed plants with<br />
origins in the Great Plains are increasingly<br />
susceptible to rust when moved eastward.<br />
Environmental Concerns<br />
<strong>Prairie</strong> sandreed does not pose any known negative<br />
concerns to the environment. It can form dense<br />
colonies on coarse soils where it is well adapted. This<br />
attribute is often looked at as a positive trait for<br />
increasing ground cover which reduces both wind<br />
and water erosion on these sites.<br />
Control<br />
Please contact your local agricultural extension<br />
specialist or county weed specialist to learn what<br />
works best in your area and how to use it safely.<br />
Always read label and safety instructions for each<br />
control method.<br />
Seeds and <strong>Plant</strong> Production<br />
Calamovilfa is a genus native to North America and<br />
contains five individual species (Rogers, 1970).<br />
Calamovilfa closely resembles Calamagrostis and<br />
Ammophila in gross morphological characteristics,<br />
and was placed close to them in the tribe Agrostideae<br />
by Hitchcock (1951). Reeder and Ellingson (1960)<br />
pointed out that Calamovilfa differs from these<br />
genera in several important embryo characteristics,<br />
types of lodicules, leaf anatomy, and chromosome<br />
size and number. Calamovilfa and Sporoblus appear<br />
to be more closely related and have several features<br />
in common, including the peculiar fruit characteristic<br />
of having its pericarp free from the seed coat, thus<br />
not a true caryopsis (Gould and Shaw, 1983). Reeder<br />
and Singh (1967) determined that the basic<br />
chromosome number of x=10 for Calamovilfa. They<br />
reported that the chromosome number for<br />
Calamovilfa longifolia determined from study of the<br />
meiosis in pollen mother cells in anthers revealed that<br />
the chromosome number is 2n=40. The average seed<br />
production at Bridger, Montana has been 183 kg/ha<br />
under irrigation in 91 cm (36 inch) rows. Seed yields<br />
in North Dakota range from 56 to 560 kg/ha (50 to<br />
500 pounds/acre) under irrigation and 56 to 168<br />
kg/ha (50 to 150 pounds/acre) under dry land<br />
conditions. It is recommended that seed production<br />
fields be planted in row widths of 61 to 91<br />
centimeters (2-3 feet). <strong>Prairie</strong> sandreed is difficult to<br />
harvest in large quantities due to late maturity, seed<br />
shattering, lodging, and hairy seed units. Soil<br />
moisture on seed production fields should be kept at<br />
half field capacity up to flowering. No irrigation<br />
water should be applied during flowering and a<br />
minimum amount of irrigation water should follow<br />
flowering. Combining should be carried out during<br />
the hard dough stage of seed development. Seed<br />
processing should begin with a hammer milling and<br />
then re-cleaning in a fanning mill. A good seed<br />
quality is approximately 85 percent purity with a 75<br />
percent germination which produces a 64 percent<br />
Pure Live Seed (PLS). There are approximately<br />
695,960 seeds in a kilogram (2.54 pounds) of seed.<br />
Cultivars, Improved, and Selected <strong>Materials</strong> (and<br />
area of origin)<br />
Contact your local Natural Resources Conservation<br />
Service office for more information. Look in the<br />
phone book under “United States Government.” The<br />
Natural Resources Conservation Service will be<br />
listed under the subheading “Department of<br />
Agriculture.”<br />
‘Goshen’ prairie sandreed was cooperatively named<br />
and released by the Soil Conservation Service <strong>Plant</strong><br />
<strong>Materials</strong> Center, Bridger, Montana and the Montana<br />
and Wyoming Agriculture Experiment Stations in<br />
1976 (Scheetz and Lohmiller, 1978). The original<br />
germplasm was collected near Torrington, Wyoming<br />
in 1959. It was released without selection and tested<br />
under the experimental designations WY-17 and P-<br />
15588.<br />
‘Pronghorn’ prairie sandreed was released by the<br />
USDA-ARS, the Agriculture Research Division of<br />
the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and the USDA-<br />
SCS Manhattan <strong>Plant</strong> <strong>Materials</strong> Center, Manhattan,<br />
Kansas in 1988 (Vogel et al., 1996). An assembly of<br />
48 accessions was collected in 1968 from Kansas,<br />
Nebraska, and South Dakota and established in a<br />
space plant nursery at Manhattan, Kansas. The top<br />
ranked accessions from the nursery were provided to<br />
L.C. Newell, ARS agronomist, for further evaluation.<br />
Selections from the nursery were evaluated for vigor,<br />
forage production and rust tolerance. Evaluation trials<br />
comparing Goshen and Pronghorn revealed that<br />
Pronghorn produced stands and forage equivalent to<br />
Goshen, but was significantly superior with respect to<br />
leaf rust resistance.<br />
ND-95 (Bowman) was selected at the USDA-SCS<br />
<strong>Plant</strong> <strong>Materials</strong> Center, Bismarck, ND. ND-95 is an<br />
informal release of materials collected in 1956 from<br />
southwestern North Dakota (Bowman County). Seed<br />
production is average for the species. Forage<br />
production is comparable to Goshen, in the northern
U.S., but ND-95 has demonstrated improved<br />
performance in parts of Canada. Its dense wiry root<br />
mass makes it well adapted for stabilizing sandy<br />
soils.<br />
Koch Germplasm prairie sandreed was released by<br />
USDA-NRCS Rose Lake <strong>Plant</strong> <strong>Materials</strong> Center and<br />
the Michigan Association of Conservation Districts<br />
in 2007. Original germplasm was collected from<br />
native stands in costal zones along Lakes Michigan<br />
and Huron and subjected to three cycles of recurrent<br />
phenotypic selection for upright growth habit, seed<br />
production, and general vigor. Koch Germplasm<br />
prairie sandreed’s anticipated uses include wind<br />
erosion control, dune stabilization, and water quality<br />
improvement in costal zones of the Great Lakes<br />
Region and other sandy areas.<br />
References<br />
Aase, J.K. and J.R. Wight. 1973. <strong>Prairie</strong> <strong>Sandreed</strong><br />
(Calamovilfa longifolia): water infiltration and<br />
use. Journal of Range Management. 26(3): 212-<br />
214.<br />
Burzlaff, D.F. 1971. Seasonal variations of the in<br />
vitro dry-matter digestibility of three sandhill<br />
grasses. Journal of Range Management. 24:60-<br />
63.<br />
Cogswell, C. and L.D. Kamstra. 1976. The stage of<br />
maturity and its effects upon the chemical<br />
composition of four native range species.<br />
Journal of Range Management. 29(6): 460-463.<br />
Craig, D., K. Sedivec, D. Tober, I. Russell, and T.<br />
Faller. 2002. Nutrient composition of selected<br />
warm-season grasses: Preliminary Report.<br />
USDA-NRCS, Bismarck, ND.<br />
Gould, F.W. and R.B. Shaw.1983. Grass Systematics<br />
2 nd Edition. Texas A&M University Press.<br />
College Station, Texas.<br />
Hitchcock, A.S. 1951. Manual of the grasses of the<br />
United States, 2 nd ed. (Revised by Agnes Chase.)<br />
U.S. Dept. Agric. Misc. Publ. 200.<br />
Mankin, C.J. 1969. Diseases of Grasses and Cereals<br />
in South Dakota. Agriculture Experiment Station<br />
Technical Bulletin 35. South Dakota State<br />
University, Brookings, SD.<br />
Maun, M.A. 1981. Seed germination and seedling<br />
establishment of Calamovilfa longifolia on Lake<br />
Huron sand dunes. Canadian Journal of Botany.<br />
59: 460-469.<br />
Maun, M.A. and S. Riach. 1981. Morphology of<br />
caryopses, seedlings, and seedling emergence of<br />
the grass Calamovilfa longifolia from various<br />
depths in sand. Oecologia. 49:137-1Mullahey,<br />
J.J., S.S. Waller, and L.E. Moser. 1991.<br />
Defoliation effects on yield and bud and tiller<br />
numbers of two Sandhills grasses. Journal of<br />
Range Management. 44(3): 241-245.<br />
Reeder, J.R. and M.A. Ellington. 1960. Calamovilfa,<br />
a misplaced genus of Gramineae. Brittonia.<br />
12:71-77.<br />
Reeder, J.R. and N. Singh. 1967 Chromosome<br />
number in Calamovilfa. Bulletin of the Torrey<br />
Botanical Club. 94:199-200.<br />
Rogers, K.E. 1970. A new species of Calamovilfa<br />
(Gramineae) from North America. Rhodora.<br />
72:72-79.<br />
Scheetz, J.G. and R.G. Lohmiller. 1978. Registration<br />
of Goshen <strong>Prairie</strong> <strong>Sandreed</strong>. Crop Science.<br />
18:693-694.<br />
Vogel, K.P., L.C. Newell, E.T. Jacobson, J.E.<br />
Watkins, P.E. Reece, and D.E. Bauer. 1996.<br />
Registration of Pronghorn <strong>Prairie</strong> <strong>Sandreed</strong><br />
Grass. Crop Science. 36:1712.<br />
Waller, S.S. and J.K. Lewis. 1979. Occurrence of C3<br />
and C4 photosynthetic pathways in North<br />
American grasses. Journal of Range<br />
Management. 32:12-28.<br />
Prepared By: Wayne Duckwitz and Richard Wynia<br />
Citation<br />
Duckwitz Wayne, and Wynia, Richard USDA-<br />
Natural Resources Conservation Service <strong>Plant</strong><br />
<strong>Materials</strong> Centers, Bismarck, ND 58502, and<br />
Manhattan, KS 66502 with additional information on<br />
Koch prairie sandreed provided by Rose Lake <strong>Plant</strong><br />
<strong>Materials</strong> Center staff East Lansing, MI 48823.<br />
Published May, 2006<br />
Edited: 16Nov2006jsp, 27Nov2006jsp,<br />
30July2007hsom13Apr2011erg<br />
For more information about this and other plants,<br />
please contact your local NRCS field office or<br />
Conservation District at http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/<br />
and visit the PLANTS Web site at<br />
http://plants.usda.gov/ or the <strong>Plant</strong> <strong>Materials</strong> <strong>Program</strong><br />
Web site http://plant-materials.nrcs.usda.gov.<br />
PLANTS is not responsible for the content or<br />
availability of other Web Sites.<br />
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