Big Bluestem
Andropogon gerardi
In the Carolinas and Georgia, found in glades, barrens and outcrops on mafic or serpentine rock; forests and woodlands; prairies and grasslands. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Arkansas. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 94%
- Height
- 4–8 feet
- Spread
- 2–3 feet
- Light
- Full sun
- Soil moisture
- Somewhat dry to moist
Space about 2.5 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 16 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count
Will it fit your yard?
At a glance
- Life cycle
- Perennial
- Bloom
- July to November
Not yet recorded · Leaves
Recorded in 44 Arkansas counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Glades, barrens and outcrops on mafic or serpentine rock
Open, thin-soil openings, outcrops and cliffs on dark, magnesium- or iron-rich rock such as serpentine, diabase or gabbro.
Forest or woodland where the source does not say how moist or dry.
Open, grass-dominated places kept open by fire, grazing or thin soil, from tallgrass prairie to Piedmont prairies.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Arkansas. Shared habitat, not food. 92 animals.
- Greater RoadrunnerGeococcyx californianus
- Greater White-fronted GooseAnser albifrons
- Greater YellowlegsTringa melanoleuca
- House FinchCarpodacus mexicanus
- KilldeerCharadrius vociferus
- Lapland LongspurCalcarius lapponicus
- Least BitternIxobrychus exilis
- Least FlycatcherEmpidonax minimus
- Long-eared OwlAsio otus
- MerlinFalco columbarius
- Palm WarblerDendroica palmarum
- Pine WarblerDendroica pinus
- Red-shouldered HawkButeo lineatus
- Ross's GooseChen rossii
- Ruddy DuckOxyura jamaicensis
- Smith's LongspurCalcarius pictus
- Swamp SparrowMelospiza georgiana
- Upland SandpiperBartramia longicauda
- VeeryCatharus fuscescens
- Yellow-throated WarblerDendroica dominica
Widespread birds also seen here (82)
Found in many habitats here, so not listed above.
- Alder Flycatcher
- American Goldfinch
- American Kestrel
- American Redstart
- American Robin
- Bald Eagle
- Baltimore Oriole
- Bank Swallow
- Belted Kingfisher
- Bewick's Wren
- Black-and-White Warbler
- Black-crowned Night-heron
- Blue Grosbeak
- Blue Jay
- Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
- Brown Creeper
- Brown Thrasher
- Canada Goose
- Carolina Chickadee
- Cedar Waxwing
- Chimney Swift
- Chipping Sparrow
- Cliff Swallow
- Common Nighthawk
- Common Yellowthroat
- Cooper's Hawk
- Dark-eyed Junco
- Double-crested Cormorant
- Downy Woodpecker
- Eastern Bluebird
- Eastern Kingbird
- Eastern Screech-owl
- Eastern Wood-pewee
- Eurasian Collared-dove
- European Starling
- Fox Sparrow
- Golden-crowned Kinglet
- Gray Catbird
- Great Horned Owl
- Hairy Woodpecker
- Harris's Sparrow
- Hermit Thrush
- Hooded Merganser
- Indigo Bunting
- Lincoln's Sparrow
- Mallard
- Mississippi Kite
- Mourning Dove
- Northern Cardinal
- Northern Flicker
- Northern Mockingbird
- Orange-crowned Warbler
- Orchard Oriole
- Osprey
- Pileated Woodpecker
- Pine Siskin
- Prairie Warbler
- Purple Finch
- Red-bellied Woodpecker
- Red-headed Woodpecker
- Red-tailed Hawk
- Red-winged Blackbird
- Ruby-crowned Kinglet
- Ruby-throated Hummingbird
- Rusty Blackbird
- Sharp-shinned Hawk
- Song Sparrow
- Spotted Sandpiper
- Summer Tanager
- Tree Swallow
- Tufted Titmouse
- Turkey Vulture
- White-breasted Nuthatch
- White-crowned Sparrow
- White-throated Sparrow
- Wild Turkey
- Wood Thrush
- Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
- Yellow-billed Cuckoo
- Yellow-breasted Chat
- Yellow-crowned Night-heron
- Yellow-rumped Warbler
Who uses this plant?
16CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AR
Genus host records with ranges including AR · Andropogon
- Agrotis gladiariaSwordsman Dart, Clay-Backed Cut-Worm
- Amblyscirtes alternataDusky Roadside-Skipper, Least Florida Skipper, Dusky Little Skipper;
- Anatrytone loganDelaware Skipper, Logan Skipper, Black-Vein Skipper
- Atrytone arogosArogos Skipper, Beardgrass Skipper
- Atrytone byssusByssus Skipper, Golden Skipper
- Atrytonopsis hiannaDusted Skipper
- Cercyonis pegalaCommon Wood Nymph
- Dargida diffusaWheat Head Armywotm Moth
- Hesperia meteaCobweb Skipper
- Lacinipolia meditataThe Thinker
Show all 16
- Lerema acciusClouded Skipper, Corn Leaf tier
- Limochores origenesCrossline Skipper
- Meropleon ambifuscaNewman's Borer, Newman's Brocade
- Mocis texanaTexas Mocis
- Nastra lherminierSwarthy Skipper
- Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
1BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Andropogon
Individual names are not available yet.
Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
3BirdsRecorded eating Andropogon in Arkansas
Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Birds whose range includes Arkansas, most records first.
- Wild Turkey2 diet records
- Brown-headed Cowbird1 diet record
- Red-winged Blackbird1 diet record
Direct food only. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening
No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Birds that eat Andropogon 3
Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab), CC0 1.0.
- Wild TurkeyMeleagris gallopavo
- Brown-headed CowbirdMolothrus ater
- Red-winged BlackbirdAgelaius phoeniceus
Plant details
- Family
- Poaceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 4a–9b
- Flower color
- Blue, brown/copper or red
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “July to November” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Blue, brown/copper or red” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differs)
- Hardiness · “Zones 4a–9b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder differs)
- Height · “4–8 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder differs)
- Life cycle · “Perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder differ)
- Soil · “Moist; Occasionally dry; Occasionally wet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder differ)
- Spread · “2–3 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder differs)
Also known as
Andropogon gerardii
Conservation status
| Arkansas rank | SNR |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5 |
| AR status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Will it fit your yard?
Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.
Sources
- Atlas of the Vascular Plants of Arkansas (2013)
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025)
- Arkansas occurrence source
- Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
- Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)
- Narango, Tallamy & Shropshire 2020, Few keystone plant genera support the majority of Lepidoptera species, Nature Communications