Bluejoint vs Woolgrass - TreeTime.ca

Bluejoint vs Woolgrass

Calamagrostis canadensis

Scirpus cyperinus

CUSTOM GROW

CUSTOM GROW

Bluejoint
Woolgrass

Bluejoint is a native perennial grass that forms tall, dense colonies. It is one of the most abundant grasses found in Canada and the United States. The extensive shallow root system and spreading rhizomes help stabilise soils, especially in wet meadows, marshes, and along streambanks.
It is a cool-season grass, growing most actively in spring and fall and slowing during the heat of summer. Seeds from its purple-tinged spikes feed birds and small mammals, and the plant itself provides forage for wildlife and livestock, though it does not tolerate heavy grazing. Its tall, dense growth also offers nesting habitat for wetland birds. With these combined values, Bluejoint is well-suited for naturalisation, riparian plantings, and habitat restoration projects.

Woolgrass is a native perennial sedge that forms dense clumps in wetlands, ditches, and along shorelines. Its ability to thrive in saturated soils and shallow water, combined with its spreading growth habit, makes it especially valuable for waterside & riparian plantings, erosion control, ecological restoration, and naturalization projects.
The distinctive spikelets are covered in brown woolly bristles, which is where it gets the name Woolgrass. It produces seeds that are eaten by waterfowl and small mammals, while its dense stems offer cover and nesting habitat. It grows most actively in spring and fall, slowing or going dormant in the summer heat.

Bluejoint Quick Facts

Woolgrass Quick Facts

Zone: 2a
Zone: 3a
Height: 1.2 m (4 ft)
Height: 1.5 m (5 ft)
Spread: 0.3 m (1.0 ft)
Spread: 0.9 m (3 ft)
Light: partial shade, full sun
Light: partial shade, full sun
Moisture: normal, wet
Moisture: wet
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: fast
Life span: medium
Life span: short
Growth form: upright, clump-forming
Growth form: upright, colony-forming
Spreading: rhizomes - high, seeds - high
Spreading: rhizomes - medium


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: MB, ON, QC, NS, NB, NL, PE
Other Names: bluejoint grass, bluejoint reedgrass, canada blue joint, canada reedgrass, marsh reedgrass
Other Names: brown woolly sedge, common woolgrass, common woolly bulrush, cottongrass bulrush, marsh bulrush, wool grass