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Blue-eyed Grass
Sisyrinchium bellum
  
About Blue-eyed Grass (Sisyrinchium bellum) 95 Nurseries Carry This Plant Blue-eyed Grass (Sisyrinchium bellum) is a 1-ft-tall perennial herb that grows throughout California, usually in open places where there is some moisture, particularly grassy areas. It can also be found in woodlands and at altitudes up to almost 8000 feet.

Its leaves are grassy and tufted. The flowers are small and purplish-blue, varying somewhat in color from a true blue to a definite purple; occasional white-flowering plants are found. It flowers from January to July. After flowering, it dies back to the ground and is dormant over the summer. It prefers some moisture and good drainage, but will tolerate summer dryness.

It can be propagated by seed, and self-sows. It can also be propagated by division of its rhizomes, and the flower stems can be rooted. It is moderately hardy and will tolerate temperatures down to 20 degrees F.

Blue-eyed Grass is very easy to grow and will easily reseed. Best to plant on flat areas in loamy soils that that hold moisture well.

Even though it goes dormant in the summer in dryer, southern areas, Blue-eyed Grass is more likely to survive the summer drought with occasional watering. It's best to plant this at the edges of landscapes for pops of color.

This plant is on several fire-resistant plant lists, including FireSafe Marin and County of San Diego.
Plant Description
Plant Type
Plant Type
Perennial herb

Size
Size
1 - 2 ft tall
3 in wide

Form
Form
Upright Columnar

Growth Rate
Growth Rate
Moderate

Dormancy
Dormancy
Summer Semi-Deciduous

Fragrance
Fragrance
None

Flower Color
Flower Color
Blue, Lavender, Purple

Flowering Season
Flowering Season
Winter, Spring

Landscaping Information
Sun
Sun
Full Sun, Part Shade

Moisture
Moisture
Low

Summer Irrigation
Summer Irrigation
Max 2x / month once established

Nurseries
Nurseries

Ease of Care
Ease of Care
Very Easy

Cold Tolerance
Cold Tolerance
Tolerates cold to 0° F

Soil Drainage
Soil Drainage
Fast, Medium, Slow

Soil Description
Soil Description
Tolerant of sand and clay. Soil PH: 5 . 0 - 8 . 0

Common uses
Common uses
Groundcovers, Deer Resistant, Butterfly Gardens

Companion Plants
Companion Plants
Chamise, California Buckwheat, Lemonade Berry, Ponderosa Pine, Box Elder, Bigleaf Maple, Pacific Madrone, Manzanita species, Artemisia species, native grass species, Juncus spp., Allium spp.

Propagation
Propagation?
Readily self-seeds.  For propagating by seed: 1.5 mos. stratification. No treatment for 3-6 yr. old seeds.

Sunset Zones
Sunset Zones?
3, 4, 5, 6*, 7*, 8, 9*, 10, 11, 14*, 15*, 16*, 17*, 18*, 19*, 20*, 21*, 22*, 23*, 24*

Natural Setting
Site Type
Site Type
Meadows, seasonally moist Grasslands, grassy openings in Chaparral or Coastal Scrub, understory of Yellow Pine Forest and Foothill Woodland, and on the margins of wetland/riparian areas

Climate
Climate
Annual Precipitation: 2.3" - 152.5", Summer Precipitation: 0.14" - 5.67", Coldest Month: 20.2" - 61.0", Hottest Month: 45.6" - 90.5", Humidity: 0.09" - 48.67", Elevation: -166" - 10141"

Alternative Names
Common Names: Western Blue-eyed Grass


Sources include: Wikipedia. All text shown in the "About" section of these pages is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Plant observation data provided by the participants of the California Consortia of Herbaria, Sunset information provided by Jepson Flora Project. Propogation from seed information provided by the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden from "Seed Propagation of Native California Plants" by Dara E. Emery. Sources of plant photos include CalPhotos, Wikimedia Commons, and independent plant photographers who have agreed to share their images with Calscape. Other general sources of information include Calflora, CNPS Manual of Vegetation Online, Jepson Flora Project, Las Pilitas, Theodore Payne, Tree of Life, The Xerces Society, and information provided by CNPS volunteer editors, with special thanks to Don Rideout. Climate data used in creation of plant range maps is from PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, using 30 year (1981-2010) annual "normals" at an 800 meter spatial resolution.

Links:   Jepson eFlora Taxon Page  CalPhotos  Wikipedia  Calflora


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