Amur silvergrass (Miscanthus sacchariflorus)

Features and Characteristics

Miscanthus sacchariflorus, commonly known as silver banner grass or Amur silver grass, is a deciduous, rhizomatous, clump-forming, warm season, perennial grass that typically grows to 5-8’ tall and to 4 1/2’ wide. It is native to wet lowlands in Japan, Manchuria, Korea and northern China. It has been introduced into North America and has naturalized from Quebec and Ontario south to Minnesota, Nebraska, Missouri, Illinois, and New York. It is primarily distinguished by its preference for moist to wet soils, stout rhizomes, a somewhat invasive spreading habit, and spikelets which lack awns. It will invade sunny to semi-shaded environments such as roadside ditches, woodland borders and clearings. Rhizomatous spread is more pronounced in wet areas, but less pronounced in areas with dry and/or heavy soils. Flat, linear, rigid, blue-green leaves (each to 36” long and 1” wide) have pale silver-green midribs. Leaves turn yellow in autumn. In late summer to early autumn, this grass produces hairy, pyramidal to fan-shaped panicles (each to 16” long) of silky, silvery-white spikelets. The plume-like flowers which resemble corn tassles are held well above the foliage, opening silver and becoming fluffy white upon drying. Inflorescences are narrower and more upright than those of Miscanthus sinensis. Inflorescences remain attractive through much of the winter.

Genus name comes from the Greek words miskos meaning a stem and anthos meaning flower in reference to the stalked spikelets.

Specific epithet means relating to sugar in reference to the relationship between the within grass with plants in the genus Saccharum (sugar cane), both being plants in the grass family.