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Muhlenbergia capillaris
Also called Hairy Awn Muhly, Long Awn Hairgrass, Purple Grass, Hairawn Muhly Grass, Gulf Muhly Grass, Pink Muhly Grass
Hairawn muhly is a clumping, warm-season ornamental grass native to the southeastern United States and the Caribbean, valued for its airy pink-purple flower plumes in fall. The key to growing it is full sun and well-drained soil; it tolerates drought once established.
Muhlenbergia capillaris, commonly known as the hairawn muhly, is a perennial North American sedge-like plant that grows to be about 30–90 cm (0.98–2.95 ft) tall and 60–90 cm (2.0–3.0 ft) wide. The plant includes a double layer; green, leaf-like structures surround the understory, and purple-pink flowers outgrow them from the bottom up. The plant is a warm-season grass, meaning that leaves begin growth in the summer. During the summer, the leaves stay green, but they morph during the fall to produce a more copper color. The seasonal changes also include the flowers, as they grow out during the fall and stay healthy till the end of autumn. The muhly grows along the border of roads and on plain prairies. The grass clumps into herds, causing bush-like establishments in the area the hairawn muhly inhabits. The flowers are very feathery and add a cloudlike appearance to the top of the grass.
Muhlenbergia capillaris can be found in sandy or rocky woods and clearings originating from a range of host states, which include Florida to east Texas, north to Massachusetts, New Jersey, eastern Pennsylvania, Kentucky, southern Indiana, Missouri, and Kansas. However, it is endangered in Connecticut, Indiana, Maryland, and New Jersey, and is said to have vanished from Pennsylvania and almost certainly Ohio. The muhly grows along the border of roads and in plain prairies. The grass clumps into herds, causing bush-like establishments in the area the hairawn muhly inhabits.
Bamboo muhly · Lindheimer's muhly · Deergrass · Nimblewill · Dune Hair Grass · Bog muhly
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Muhlenbergia capillaris by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
