Switchgrass (Maine Ecotype)

Panicum virgatum Origin: Maine Improvement status: Wild Seeds per packet: ~100 BOTANICAL SAMPLE - NOT GERMINATION TESTED Life cycle: Perennial Switchgrass is a deep-rooted native perennial bunchgrass perhaps best known for once being mentioned by former US President George W. Bush in a State of the Union address as a biofuel stock. It has yet to live up to the early hype, but it is still a really impressive plant — and may yet become a relatively sustainable source of biofuel in the future. In the meantime, and for eons long past, switchgrass is an important component of remnant native prairies, providing cover for wild animals, deep roots for soil conservation and water retention, and forage for grazing animals. It's also a highly effective carbon sequestration plant — and a full-grown specimen, reaching 5 or 6 feet tall, is beautiful to behold too! Our seeds come from our friend Aaron Parker of Edgewood Nursery in Falmouth, Maine. The plants he grows are from a local Maine ecotype.