BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS
SPECIES: Calamagrostis purpurascens | Purple Pinegrass 



GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS : 
Purple pinegrass is an erect, densely tufted, native perennial grass
[14,17,19,23].  The culms, which are rough and rather stiff, generally
grow 1 to 3 feet (30-100 cm) tall.  Old blades are typically persistent
at the base of the plant [23,17,19].  The roots are fibrous and the
rhizomes are short and thick [14,23,30].


RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM : 
   Hemicryptophte
   Geophyte


REGENERATION PROCESSES : 
Sexual reproduction:  Purple pinegrass compact heads are wind
pollinated, [28], and the seeds are wind dispersed [15].  Seed viability
varies each year because of the severe and unpredictable nature of its
environment [4].  Seeds collected from the Beartooth Plateau, Montana,
had a mean viability of 79 percent [5].  No significant response to
light conditions has been observed, but seeds have been found to
germinate better under wet-cold conditions than dry-cold conditions [5].

Vegetative reproduction:  Purple pinegrass will regenerate vegetatively
from underground rhizomes [14].


SITE CHARACTERISTICS : 
Purple pinegrass typically grows near or above timberline on open
ridges, dry rocky hills, and dry woods, as well as in moist parks and
meadows [12,14,23,25,30].  It generally occurs from 8,000 to over 13,000
feet (2,591-3,962 m) in elevation [9].  This grass grows on sandy to
coarse textured soils [14,16].  It mostly occurs on basic soils and will
tolerate mildly saline sites and drought conditions.  Purple pinegrass
grows best in full sunlight but will survive at reduced vigor under
partial shade [14].

Plant associates:  Purple pinegrass is commonly associated with the
following species:  limber pine (Pinus flexilis), lodgepole pine (P.
contorta), Engelmann spruce (Picea engelmannii), Ross sedge (Carex
rossii), timberline bluegrass (Poa rupicola), western yarrow (Achillea
millefolium var. lanulosa), oatgrass (Helictotrichon mortonianum), Rocky
Mountain selaginella (Selaginella densa), and upland bluegrass (P.
glaucantha) [10,16,21,25,29].


SUCCESSIONAL STATUS : 
Facultative Seral Species

Purple pinegrass is an initial off-site colonizer of alpine communities
and will frequently persist in early to late seral stages [5].  This
grass also occurs among climax and successional fell-field vegetation
[3].


SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT : 
Spring bud break of purple pinegrass in Colorado occurs in early to
mid-May [1].  In Colorado, Montana, and Wyoming, flowering generally
begins in early June to July and ends in August [9].  Autumn die-back
occurs October 10 to 15 [1].

Related categories for Species: Calamagrostis purpurascens | Purple Pinegrass