Northern or Prairie Dropseed is widely regarded as the most attractive of the American prairie grasses. It is a clumping warm season grass with bright green leaves and delicate flower spikes that appear in late summer and early fall. The clump can grow to about 3 feet high and 3 feet wide. The fragrant flowers are a pinkish brown which mature to a golden brown in late fall.

In massed plantings the flowers provide an attractive pinkish haze which is enhanced by back-lighting in early morning or late afternoon. This grass is a wonderful all year plant with bright green foliage in spring and summer, flower spikes in late summer, fall and winter, and golden foliage in fall. Many gardeners prune back very hard in late winter so the plant can provide visual interest through the winter.

This beauty is tough also, being able to cope with drought, deer, black walnut, pollution and clay soils while providing food for insects and birds. Despite the name it does not readily self-seed in the garden and so is a beautiful addition to most midwestern gardens.