American Sloughgrass
Beckmannia syzigachne
Family: Poaceae or Gramineae
What it is like
Beckmannia syzigachne is a PERENNIAL growing to 1.5 m (5ft). It is not frost tender. It is in flower from May to June, and the seeds ripen from July to August. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Wind. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils and can grow in very alkaline and saline soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist or wet soil and can grow in water.
Height (m): 1.5
Where it is found
Wet meadows, swamps, marshes and shallow water.
Eastern Europe to central Asia and North America.
Conservation Status:
Countries/locations it is found in
How it is used
Food
Rating: 2
Seed - cooked. A mild flavour, it can be ground into a flour and used as a cereal. The seed is very small but is easily harvested. It does then have to be separated from its husk, which is a very fiddly operation. Some N. American Indian tribes burn the husks of grass seeds.
Medicine
Rating: 0
Other
Rating:
The plant is used for making bedding and pillows.
How it is grown
Prefers a moist to wet soil, succeeding in shallow water. Tolerates saline soils. Tolerates a pH in the range 5.8 to 7.6. We have no specific information on the hardiness of this species, but we have grown it successfully outdoors in Cornwall and, judging by its range, it should be cold-hardy in most if not all of Britain. Some botanists treat this species as no more than a synonym of B. eruciformis.
Propagating it: Seed - surface sow in spring in pots in a cold frame. Do not let the soil dry out. Very quick germination. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out into their permanent positions in the summer. If there is sufficient seed, it can be sown in situ in the spring. Division in spring. Very easy, larger divisions can be planted straight into their permanent positions whilst smaller clumps are best potted up and kept in a cold frame until they are growing away well.
Best place to grow: Bog Garden; Cultivated Beds;
Habit: Perennial
Hardiness:
Growth:
Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)
Shade: Semi-shade, no shade
Moisture: Moist, wet, water