Echinacea vs Sweetgrass - TreeTime.ca

Echinacea vs Sweetgrass

Echinacea angustifolia

Anthoxanthum nitens (Hierochloe odorata)

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

CUSTOM GROW

Echinacea
Sweetgrass

Echinacea is a unique flowering plant. The tall stalks topped with badminton-birdie-like flowers make this plant a distinctive addition to any garden or yard.

Echinacea this drought tolerant and will attract bees, butterflies, birds and other wildlife.

Sweetgrass is a cool-season perennial grass best known for its sweet, vanilla-like fragrance. The scent comes from coumarin in the leaves, which is pleasant to humans but has a bitter taste that makes the plant less appealing to deer and other herbivores. As a cool-season grass, Sweetgrass grows most vigorously in spring and fall, slowing or even going dormant during the heat of summer.

It spreads quickly through creeping rhizomes and can be difficult to remove once established, so it is best planted in areas where its spread will not cause problems. Due to its deep, vigorous root system and preference for moist soils, Sweetgrass is especially useful for erosion control, soil stabilization, riparian plantings, and naturalization projects.

Note: Sweetgrass was formerly classified under the scientific name Hierochloe odorata and its subspecies. The subspecies found in Canada are currently considered two distinct species: Anthoxanthum hirtum, which is native across Canada, and Anthoxanthum nitens, which is native to Eastern Canada. Because these two species are alike and share many overlapping common names, they are often considered as only one species.

Echinacea Quick Facts

Sweetgrass Quick Facts

Zone: 2a
Zone: 1a
Height: 0.6 m (2.0 ft)
Height: 0.5 m (1.5 ft)
Spread: 0.9 m (3 ft)
Spread: 0.5 m (1.5 ft)
Light: full sun
Light: partial shade, full sun
Moisture: dry, normal
Moisture: normal, wet
Growth rate: medium
Growth rate: fast
Life span: medium
Life span: short
Growth form: arching to upright, colony-forming
Spreading: rhizomes - high, seeds - low
Suckering: none


Toxicity: toxic if large amounts ingested
Foliage: fragrant, bright green
Flowers: purple flowers
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: SK, MB
Native to: AB, BC, SK, MB, ON, QC, NS, NB, NL, YT, NT, NU, PE
Other Names: bison grass, buffalo grass, holy grass, sweet grass, vanilla sweetgrass