Index / Search / Panicum virgatum
§1 Plant
Panicum virgatum L.
vernacular switchgrass — species · Poaceae
§2Habit & range
Habit and range
- Growth habit
- Graminoid
- Duration
- Perennial
- Group
- Monocot
- Family
- Poaceae Barnhart
- Genus
- Panicum
§2a
Native status, by region
- CAN Canada Native
- HI Hawaii Introduced
- L48 Lower 48 States Native
§2b
County-level range
· 965 counties across 31 states/territories§3Cultivation specs · USDA
Recorded by the USDA Plant Materials Program.
§3a
Tolerances
- Drought
- Medium
- Shade
- High
- Moisture use
- Medium
- Fire
- High
- Salinity
- Medium
- Anaerobic
- Medium
- CaCO₃
- Low
- Hedging
- None
§3b
Climate & soil
- Cold tolerance
- -43 °F minimum
- Frost-free days
- 120 min.
- Precipitation
- 12–60 in/yr
- pH range
- 4.5–8
- Root depth
- 12 in min.
- Fertility need
- High
- Soil texture
- coarse, medium, fine
§3c
Form & growth
- Growth form
- Rhizomatous
- Growth rate
- Rapid
- Lifespan
- Long
- Mature height
- 5 ft
- Foliage texture
- Coarse
- Foliage colour
- Green
- Porosity (summer)
- Dense
- Porosity (winter)
- Dense
- Flower colour
- Yellow
- Fruit colour
- Brown
- Fire resistant
- No
- N fixation
- None
- Toxicity
- None
§3d
Reproduction
- Bloom period
- Mid Summer
- Seed abundance
- High
- Seed begins
- Summer
- Seed ends
- Fall
- Spread rate
- Slow
- Stratify
- No
- Seeds / lb
- 259,000
- Propagation
- seed
§3e
Use & availability
- Commercial availability
- Routinely Available
- Nursery stock
- No
- Browse palatability
- Medium
- Graze palatability
- High
- Palatable, human
- No
- Protein potential
- Medium
- Lumber
- No
- Christmas tree
- No
§4Counties, by state
Recorded in 965 counties across 31 states/territories.
Alabama view state ↗ 13 N ▾
Arizona view state ↗ 5 N ▾
Arkansas view state ↗ 36 N ▾
- Arkansas 05001
- Ashley 05003
- Baxter 05005
- Benton 05007
- Boone 05009
- Bradley 05011
- Calhoun 05013
- Carroll 05015
- Cleburne 05023
- Craighead 05031
- Drew 05043
- Faulkner 05045
- Franklin 05047
- Fulton 05049
- Garland 05051
- Howard 05061
- Izard 05065
- Jefferson 05069
- Johnson 05071
- Lincoln 05079
- Logan 05083
- Lonoke 05085
- Madison 05087
- Marion 05089
- Monroe 05095
- Perry 05105
- Prairie 05117
- Pulaski 05119
- Saline 05125
- Scott 05127
- Sebastian 05131
- Sharp 05135
- St. Francis 05123
- Stone 05137
- Union 05139
- Yell 05149
Delaware view state ↗ 3 N ▾
District of Columbia view state ↗ 1 N ▾
Florida view state ↗ 45 N ▾
- Alachua 12001
- Bay 12005
- Brevard 12009
- Broward 12011
- Calhoun 12013
- Charlotte 12015
- Citrus 12017
- Clay 12019
- Collier 12021
- Dixie 12029
- Duval 12031
- Escambia 12033
- Flagler 12035
- Franklin 12037
- Gadsden 12039
- Gulf 12045
- Hamilton 12047
- Hernando 12053
- Holmes 12059
- Indian River 12061
- Jackson 12063
- Lee 12071
- Leon 12073
- Levy 12075
- Liberty 12077
- Manatee 12081
- Marion 12083
- Martin 12085
- Miami-Dade 12086
- Monroe 12087
- Nassau 12089
- Okaloosa 12091
- Orange 12095
- Palm Beach 12099
- Pasco 12101
- Pinellas 12103
- Polk 12105
- Santa Rosa 12113
- Sarasota 12115
- St. Johns 12109
- Taylor 12123
- Volusia 12127
- Wakulla 12129
- Walton 12131
- Washington 12133
Georgia view state ↗ 33 N ▾
- Baker 13007
- Bartow 13015
- Berrien 13019
- Calhoun 13037
- Camden 13039
- Catoosa 13047
- Chatham 13051
- Cherokee 13057
- Cobb 13067
- Colquitt 13071
- Cook 13075
- DeKalb 13089
- Dougherty 13095
- Douglas 13097
- Fulton 13121
- Glynn 13127
- Grady 13131
- Harris 13145
- Jackson 13157
- Jasper 13159
- Lee 13177
- Liberty 13179
- McIntosh 13191
- Mitchell 13205
- Rabun 13241
- Rockdale 13247
- Spalding 13255
- Talbot 13263
- Terrell 13273
- Thomas 13275
- Toombs 13279
- Upson 13293
- Worth 13321
Illinois view state ↗ 88 N ▾
- Adams 17001
- Alexander 17003
- Bond 17005
- Boone 17007
- Brown 17009
- Bureau 17011
- Calhoun 17013
- Carroll 17015
- Cass 17017
- Champaign 17019
- Clay 17025
- Clinton 17027
- Coles 17029
- Cook 17031
- Crawford 17033
- De Witt 17039
- DeKalb 17037
- Douglas 17041
- DuPage 17043
- Edwards 17047
- Effingham 17049
- Fayette 17051
- Ford 17053
- Fulton 17057
- Gallatin 17059
- Grundy 17063
- Hancock 17067
- Hardin 17069
- Henderson 17071
- Henry 17073
- Iroquois 17075
- Jackson 17077
- Jasper 17079
- Jersey 17083
- Jo Daviess 17085
- Johnson 17087
- Kane 17089
- Kankakee 17091
- Kendall 17093
- Knox 17095
- Lake 17097
- LaSalle 17099
- Lawrence 17101
- Lee 17103
- Livingston 17105
- Logan 17107
- Macon 17115
- Macoupin 17117
- Marion 17121
- Mason 17125
- Massac 17127
- McDonough 17109
- McHenry 17111
- McLean 17113
- Menard 17129
- Mercer 17131
- Morgan 17137
- Moultrie 17139
- Ogle 17141
- Peoria 17143
- Perry 17145
- Piatt 17147
- Pike 17149
- Pope 17151
- Pulaski 17153
- Putnam 17155
- Randolph 17157
- Rock Island 17161
- Saline 17165
- Sangamon 17167
- Schuyler 17169
- Scott 17171
- St. Clair 17163
- Stark 17175
- Stephenson 17177
- Tazewell 17179
- Union 17181
- Vermilion 17183
- Wabash 17185
- Warren 17187
- Washington 17189
- Wayne 17191
- White 17193
- Whiteside 17195
- Will 17197
- Williamson 17199
- Winnebago 17201
- Woodford 17203
Indiana view state ↗ 55 N ▾
- Allen 18003
- Benton 18007
- Boone 18011
- Cass 18017
- Clay 18021
- Clinton 18023
- Crawford 18025
- Daviess 18027
- Dearborn 18029
- Elkhart 18039
- Floyd 18043
- Fountain 18045
- Fulton 18049
- Gibson 18051
- Greene 18055
- Hamilton 18057
- Harrison 18061
- Hendricks 18063
- Henry 18065
- Howard 18067
- Huntington 18069
- Jasper 18073
- Jay 18075
- Jefferson 18077
- Knox 18083
- Kosciusko 18085
- Lagrange 18087
- Lake 18089
- LaPorte 18091
- Lawrence 18093
- Marion 18097
- Marshall 18099
- Monroe 18105
- Montgomery 18107
- Newton 18111
- Ohio 18115
- Perry 18123
- Porter 18127
- Posey 18129
- Pulaski 18131
- Putnam 18133
- Ripley 18137
- St. Joseph 18141
- Starke 18149
- Steuben 18151
- Sullivan 18153
- Switzerland 18155
- Tippecanoe 18157
- Tipton 18159
- Vermillion 18165
- Vigo 18167
- Wabash 18169
- Warren 18171
- Wells 18179
- White 18181
Iowa view state ↗ 46 N ▾
- Allamakee 19005
- Audubon 19009
- Boone 19015
- Buena Vista 19021
- Calhoun 19025
- Carroll 19027
- Cherokee 19035
- Clarke 19039
- Clay 19041
- Crawford 19047
- Dallas 19049
- Decatur 19053
- Dickinson 19059
- Emmet 19063
- Fremont 19071
- Greene 19073
- Guthrie 19077
- Hancock 19081
- Harrison 19085
- Humboldt 19091
- Ida 19093
- Jackson 19097
- Jasper 19099
- Kossuth 19109
- Louisa 19115
- Lyon 19119
- Mahaska 19123
- Mills 19129
- Monona 19133
- O'Brien 19141
- Page 19145
- Palo Alto 19147
- Pocahontas 19151
- Polk 19153
- Pottawattamie 19155
- Ringgold 19159
- Sac 19161
- Shelby 19165
- Sioux 19167
- Story 19169
- Union 19175
- Washington 19183
- Wayne 19185
- Webster 19187
- Winneshiek 19191
- Woodbury 19193
Kansas view state ↗ 105 N ▾
- Allen 20001
- Anderson 20003
- Atchison 20005
- Barber 20007
- Barton 20009
- Bourbon 20011
- Brown 20013
- Butler 20015
- Chase 20017
- Chautauqua 20019
- Cherokee 20021
- Cheyenne 20023
- Clark 20025
- Clay 20027
- Cloud 20029
- Coffey 20031
- Comanche 20033
- Cowley 20035
- Crawford 20037
- Decatur 20039
- Dickinson 20041
- Doniphan 20043
- Douglas 20045
- Edwards 20047
- Elk 20049
- Ellis 20051
- Ellsworth 20053
- Finney 20055
- Ford 20057
- Franklin 20059
- Geary 20061
- Gove 20063
- Graham 20065
- Grant 20067
- Gray 20069
- Greeley 20071
- Greenwood 20073
- Hamilton 20075
- Harper 20077
- Harvey 20079
- Haskell 20081
- Hodgeman 20083
- Jackson 20085
- Jefferson 20087
- Jewell 20089
- Johnson 20091
- Kearny 20093
- Kingman 20095
- Kiowa 20097
- Labette 20099
- Lane 20101
- Leavenworth 20103
- Lincoln 20105
- Linn 20107
- Logan 20109
- Lyon 20111
- Marion 20115
- Marshall 20117
- McPherson 20113
- Meade 20119
- Miami 20121
- Mitchell 20123
- Montgomery 20125
- Morris 20127
- Morton 20129
- Nemaha 20131
- Neosho 20133
- Ness 20135
- Norton 20137
- Osage 20139
- Osborne 20141
- Ottawa 20143
- Pawnee 20145
- Phillips 20147
- Pottawatomie 20149
- Pratt 20151
- Rawlins 20153
- Reno 20155
- Republic 20157
- Rice 20159
- Riley 20161
- Rooks 20163
- Rush 20165
- Russell 20167
- Saline 20169
- Scott 20171
- Sedgwick 20173
- Seward 20175
- Shawnee 20177
- Sheridan 20179
- Sherman 20181
- Smith 20183
- Stafford 20185
- Stanton 20187
- Stevens 20189
- Sumner 20191
- Thomas 20193
- Trego 20195
- Wabaunsee 20197
- Wallace 20199
- Washington 20201
- Wichita 20203
- Wilson 20205
- Woodson 20207
- Wyandotte 20209
Kentucky view state ↗ 42 N ▾
- Ballard 21007
- Boone 21015
- Bracken 21023
- Breckinridge 21027
- Butler 21031
- Campbell 21037
- Carter 21043
- Christian 21047
- Crittenden 21055
- Edmonson 21061
- Fayette 21067
- Floyd 21071
- Fulton 21075
- Gallatin 21077
- Garrard 21079
- Greenup 21089
- Hardin 21093
- Harrison 21097
- Hickman 21105
- Jefferson 21111
- Jessamine 21113
- Laurel 21125
- Lewis 21135
- Livingston 21139
- Lyon 21143
- Madison 21151
- Marshall 21157
- McCracken 21145
- McCreary 21147
- Meade 21163
- Montgomery 21173
- Nelson 21179
- Ohio 21183
- Oldham 21185
- Pendleton 21191
- Perry 21193
- Pulaski 21199
- Scott 21209
- Trigg 21221
- Warren 21227
- Wayne 21231
- Whitley 21235
Louisiana view state ↗ 39 N ▾
- Acadia 22001
- Allen 22003
- Beauregard 22011
- Caddo 22017
- Calcasieu 22019
- Cameron 22023
- Claiborne 22027
- De Soto 22031
- East Baton Rouge 22033
- East Feliciana 22037
- Evangeline 22039
- Grant 22043
- Iberia 22045
- Jefferson 22051
- Jefferson Davis 22053
- Lafayette 22055
- Lafourche 22057
- LaSalle 22059
- Livingston 22063
- Morehouse 22067
- Natchitoches 22069
- Orleans 22071
- Ouachita 22073
- Rapides 22079
- Sabine 22085
- St. Bernard 22087
- St. Charles 22089
- St. Helena 22091
- St. Mary 22101
- St. Tammany 22103
- Tangipahoa 22105
- Terrebonne 22109
- Union 22111
- Vermilion 22113
- Vernon 22115
- Washington 22117
- Webster 22119
- West Carroll 22123
- Winn 22127
Maine view state ↗ 6 N ▾
Maryland view state ↗ 1 N ▾
Massachusetts view state ↗ 14 N ▾
Michigan view state ↗ 37 N ▾
- Allegan 26005
- Arenac 26011
- Bay 26017
- Benzie 26019
- Berrien 26021
- Branch 26023
- Calhoun 26025
- Cass 26027
- Cheboygan 26031
- Dickinson 26043
- Eaton 26045
- Grand Traverse 26055
- Hillsdale 26059
- Houghton 26061
- Huron 26063
- Ingham 26065
- Jackson 26075
- Kalamazoo 26077
- Kent 26081
- Lapeer 26087
- Leelanau 26089
- Lenawee 26091
- Livingston 26093
- Mason 26105
- Monroe 26115
- Muskegon 26121
- Oakland 26125
- Oceana 26127
- Ottawa 26139
- Presque Isle 26141
- Shiawassee 26155
- St. Clair 26147
- St. Joseph 26149
- Tuscola 26157
- Van Buren 26159
- Washtenaw 26161
- Wayne 26163
Minnesota view state ↗ 60 N ▾
- Aitkin 27001
- Anoka 27003
- Becker 27005
- Big Stone 27011
- Blue Earth 27013
- Brown 27015
- Carlton 27017
- Cass 27021
- Chippewa 27023
- Clay 27027
- Clearwater 27029
- Cottonwood 27033
- Dakota 27037
- Douglas 27041
- Faribault 27043
- Fillmore 27045
- Freeborn 27047
- Goodhue 27049
- Grant 27051
- Hennepin 27053
- Houston 27055
- Jackson 27063
- Kandiyohi 27067
- Kittson 27069
- Lac qui Parle 27073
- Lake 27075
- Lake of the Woods 27077
- Le Sueur 27079
- Lincoln 27081
- Lyon 27083
- Martin 27091
- McLeod 27085
- Morrison 27097
- Mower 27099
- Nicollet 27103
- Nobles 27105
- Norman 27107
- Otter Tail 27111
- Pennington 27113
- Pine 27115
- Pipestone 27117
- Polk 27119
- Pope 27121
- Ramsey 27123
- Roseau 27135
- Sherburne 27141
- St. Louis 27137
- Stearns 27145
- Steele 27147
- Stevens 27149
- Swift 27151
- Todd 27153
- Traverse 27155
- Wabasha 27157
- Waseca 27161
- Washington 27163
- Wilkin 27167
- Winona 27169
- Wright 27171
- Yellow Medicine 27173
Mississippi view state ↗ 39 N ▾
- Alcorn 28003
- Amite 28005
- Carroll 28015
- Clarke 28023
- Clay 28025
- Copiah 28029
- Covington 28031
- Forrest 28035
- Greene 28041
- Hancock 28045
- Harrison 28047
- Hinds 28049
- Itawamba 28057
- Jackson 28059
- Jones 28067
- Lamar 28073
- Lawrence 28077
- Leake 28079
- Lee 28081
- Leflore 28083
- Lincoln 28085
- Madison 28089
- Marion 28091
- Monroe 28095
- Montgomery 28097
- Noxubee 28103
- Pearl River 28109
- Perry 28111
- Pontotoc 28115
- Prentiss 28117
- Rankin 28121
- Scott 28123
- Smith 28129
- Stone 28131
- Tishomingo 28141
- Tunica 28143
- Washington 28151
- Winston 28159
- Yalobusha 28161
Montana view state ↗ 6 N ▾
New Hampshire view state ↗ 7 N ▾
New Jersey view state ↗ 18 N ▾
New York view state ↗ 31 N ▾
- Albany 36001
- Bronx 36005
- Cattaraugus 36009
- Chautauqua 36013
- Chemung 36015
- Columbia 36021
- Delaware 36025
- Erie 36029
- Genesee 36037
- Kings 36047
- Madison 36053
- Monroe 36055
- Nassau 36059
- New York 36061
- Onondaga 36067
- Orange 36071
- Oswego 36075
- Putnam 36079
- Queens 36081
- Rensselaer 36083
- Richmond 36085
- Rockland 36087
- Schenectady 36093
- Schuyler 36097
- Suffolk 36103
- Tioga 36107
- Tompkins 36109
- Ulster 36111
- Warren 36113
- Wayne 36117
- Westchester 36119
North Carolina view state ↗ 51 N ▾
- Alleghany 37005
- Beaufort 37013
- Bertie 37015
- Bladen 37017
- Brunswick 37019
- Buncombe 37021
- Carteret 37031
- Chatham 37037
- Cherokee 37039
- Columbus 37047
- Craven 37049
- Cumberland 37051
- Currituck 37053
- Dare 37055
- Duplin 37061
- Durham 37063
- Forsyth 37067
- Franklin 37069
- Greene 37079
- Halifax 37083
- Harnett 37085
- Henderson 37089
- Hoke 37093
- Hyde 37095
- Jackson 37099
- Johnston 37101
- Jones 37103
- Lee 37105
- Lenoir 37107
- Martin 37117
- Montgomery 37123
- Nash 37127
- New Hanover 37129
- Northampton 37131
- Onslow 37133
- Pamlico 37137
- Pasquotank 37139
- Pender 37141
- Perquimans 37143
- Person 37145
- Pitt 37147
- Richmond 37153
- Robeson 37155
- Sampson 37163
- Scotland 37165
- Tyrrell 37177
- Union 37179
- Wake 37183
- Washington 37187
- Wayne 37191
- Wilson 37195
Pennsylvania view state ↗ 48 N ▾
- Allegheny 42003
- Armstrong 42005
- Beaver 42007
- Bedford 42009
- Berks 42011
- Blair 42013
- Bradford 42015
- Bucks 42017
- Butler 42019
- Cameron 42023
- Centre 42027
- Chester 42029
- Clarion 42031
- Clearfield 42033
- Clinton 42035
- Columbia 42037
- Cumberland 42041
- Dauphin 42043
- Delaware 42045
- Erie 42049
- Fayette 42051
- Forest 42053
- Huntingdon 42061
- Indiana 42063
- Lackawanna 42069
- Lancaster 42071
- Lawrence 42073
- Lehigh 42077
- Luzerne 42079
- Lycoming 42081
- McKean 42083
- Monroe 42089
- Montgomery 42091
- Montour 42093
- Northampton 42095
- Northumberland 42097
- Philadelphia 42101
- Pike 42103
- Potter 42105
- Snyder 42109
- Tioga 42117
- Union 42119
- Venango 42121
- Warren 42123
- Wayne 42127
- Westmoreland 42129
- Wyoming 42131
- York 42133
Rhode Island view state ↗ 5 N ▾
South Carolina view state ↗ 25 N ▾
- Aiken 45003
- Allendale 45005
- Barnwell 45011
- Beaufort 45013
- Berkeley 45015
- Calhoun 45017
- Charleston 45019
- Chesterfield 45025
- Clarendon 45027
- Colleton 45029
- Darlington 45031
- Dillon 45033
- Florence 45041
- Georgetown 45043
- Horry 45051
- Jasper 45053
- Kershaw 45055
- Lee 45061
- Lexington 45063
- Marion 45067
- Marlboro 45069
- Orangeburg 45075
- Richland 45079
- Sumter 45085
- Williamsburg 45089
Tennessee view state ↗ 30 N ▾
- Anderson 47001
- Benton 47005
- Bledsoe 47007
- Blount 47009
- Carroll 47017
- Cheatham 47021
- Coffee 47031
- Cumberland 47035
- Davidson 47037
- Fentress 47049
- Franklin 47051
- Grainger 47057
- Grundy 47061
- Hamilton 47065
- Hardeman 47069
- Knox 47093
- Madison 47113
- McNairy 47109
- Montgomery 47125
- Morgan 47129
- Putnam 47141
- Roane 47145
- Rutherford 47149
- Scott 47151
- Shelby 47157
- Stewart 47161
- Unicoi 47171
- Van Buren 47175
- Warren 47177
- White 47185
Vermont view state ↗ 4 N ▾
Virginia view state ↗ 48 N ▾
- Accomack 51001
- Albemarle 51003
- Alleghany 51005
- Amherst 51009
- Arlington 51013
- Augusta 51015
- Bedford 51019
- Caroline 51033
- Charles City 51036
- Chesapeake (city) 51550
- Chesterfield 51041
- Culpeper 51047
- Dinwiddie 51053
- Essex 51057
- Fairfax 51059
- Fauquier 51061
- Frederick 51069
- Gloucester 51073
- Grayson 51077
- Greensville 51081
- Hampton (city) 51650
- Hanover 51085
- Isle of Wight 51093
- James City 51095
- King and Queen 51097
- King George 51099
- King William 51101
- Lancaster 51103
- Louisa 51109
- Madison 51113
- Mathews 51115
- Middlesex 51119
- New Kent 51127
- Newport News (city) 51700
- Northampton 51131
- Northumberland 51133
- Prince George 51149
- Prince William 51153
- Richmond 51159
- Rockingham 51165
- Southampton 51175
- Stafford 51179
- Suffolk (city) 51800
- Surry 51181
- Sussex 51183
- Virginia Beach (city) 51810
- Westmoreland 51193
- York 51199
West Virginia view state ↗ 24 N ▾
- Barbour 54001
- Brooke 54009
- Cabell 54011
- Fayette 54019
- Hampshire 54027
- Hancock 54029
- Hardy 54031
- Jefferson 54037
- Lewis 54041
- Marion 54049
- Mason 54053
- Mercer 54055
- Mineral 54057
- Monongalia 54061
- Monroe 54063
- Ohio 54069
- Preston 54077
- Raleigh 54081
- Summers 54089
- Taylor 54091
- Tucker 54093
- Upshur 54097
- Wetzel 54103
- Wood 54107
§5Sources & provenance
USDA PLANTS
Symbol, taxonomy, distribution, cultivation specs, native status. Public domain.
plants.usda.gov/PAVI2 ↗GBIF Backbone
Canonical taxonomic identity, synonym resolution, cross-refs. CC0.
gbif.org/species/2705081 ↗Record version
Cached and built locally. Source version on this record:
usda-plants-mt-2026-05-26
fetched 2026-05-26T07:25:30Z