Bunchberry vs Slender Wheatgrass - TreeTime.ca

Bunchberry vs Slender Wheatgrass

Elymus trachycaulus

Cornus canadensis

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Slender Wheatgrass
Bunchberry

Slender Wheatgrass is a native perennial bunchgrass common across North America. It establishes quickly, making it effective for site recovery.
It produces upright seed heads that provide seasonal interest and seed for wildlife, and favoured for browsing by elk and sheep. Its seeds are eaten by birds and small mammals, and it provides cover for wildlife.
Slender Wheatgrass is among the first native grasses used for reclamation in western Canada and the U.S. It does exceptionally well in saline soils.

The Bunchberry, or Quatre-Temps as it is commonly known in Quebec, is an excellent ornamental plant to have in your garden. With star-shaped white flowers in spring and clusters of bright red berries in the fall, this is one of the most refined and hardy groundcovers available. The foliage has ornamental value, with leaves going from a deep green in the spring and summer to a beautiful brick-red in the fall.

Bunchberry is a spreading evergreen perennial with a ground-hugging habit of growth. This plant is not well suited for urban areas close to streetsides, as it is quite intolerant to pollution. It is Canada’s national flower.

According to a poll done by the Master Gardeners of Ontario, it is one of the most recognizable Canadian flowers.

Its flowers grow with elastic petals and "fire" its pollen with the force of 2000-3000 times the force of gravity.

Slender Wheatgrass Quick Facts

Bunchberry Quick Facts

Zone: 1b
Zone: 1b
Height: 0.8 m (2.5 ft)
Height: 0.2 m (0.6 ft)
Spread: 0.5 m (1.5 ft)
Spread: 0.6 m (2.0 ft)
Light: partial shade, full sun
Light: any
Moisture: any
Moisture: normal, wet
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: fast
Life span: short
Life span: short
Growth form: upright, clump-forming
Spreading: tillering - high, seeds - medium
Suckering: medium


Fall colour: brick red
Flowers: white
Berries: small, red
Flavor: sweet
Harvest: August/September
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: AB, BC, SK, MB, ON, QC, NS, NB, NL, YT, NT, NU, PE
Native to: AB, BC, SK, MB, ON, QC, NS, NB, NL, YT, NT, NU, PE
Other Names: slender wildrye, western wheatgrass