Carried by 10 nurseries
View Availability at NurseryData provided by the participants of the Consortium of California Herbaria
View additional distribution information on the Jepson eflora
Hordeum brachyantherum is a species of barley known by the common name meadow barley. It is native to western North America from Alaska to northern Mexico, far eastern Russia, and parts of eastern North America. It can be found in other parts of the world as an introduced species. This is a tufting perennial grass approaching a meter in maximum height. It produces compact, narrow flower clusters 8 to 10 centimeters long and purplish in color. Like other barleys the spikelets come in triplets. It has two small, often sterile lateral spikelets on pedicels and a larger, fertile central spikelet lacking a pedicel.
Grass
2 - 3 ft Tall
Upright
Moderate
Winter Deciduous
Yellow, Purple
Summer
Deer resistant
Full Sun
Low, Very Low
Max 2x / month once established
Easy
Tolerates cold to -15° F
Fast, Medium, Slow
Tolerant of a variety of garden soils as long as sufficient moisture is available.
Tolerates saline soil..
Soil PH: 5 - 8.1
For propagating by seed: No treatment.
Meadows, pastures, streambanks
Alpine Fell-Fields, Chaparral, Foothill Woodland, Lodgepole Forest, Red Fir Forest, Subalpine Forest, Valley Grassland, Yellow Pine Forest, Wetland-Riparian
Depending on water availability, pair with other perennial grasses such as Panicled Bulrush (Scirpus microcarpus) and oaks (Quercus spp.)
Butterflies and moths supported
0 confirmed and 8 likely
Venerable Dart
Agrotis venerabilis
Glassy Borer
Apamea devastator
Alfalfa Looper Moth
Autographa californica
Pale Yellow Dune Moth
Copablepharon grandis