Idaho Fescue vs Woolgrass - TreeTime.ca

Idaho Fescue vs Woolgrass

Festuca idahoensis

Scirpus cyperinus

CUSTOM GROW

CUSTOM GROW

Idaho Fescue
Woolgrass

Idaho Fescue is a native perennial bunchgrass recognized for its fine-textured, blue-green foliage. Its dense, tufted growth and deep root system make it drought-tolerant and effective at stabilizing soils, particularly on slopes and open grasslands. Its upright, arching form and dense clumps give it strong ornamental value in both natural and designed landscapes.
This hardy grass provides cover for wildlife and forage for grazing animals, while also supporting soil health and habitat diversity. Idaho Fescue is well-suited for erosion control, ecological restoration, naturalization, xeriscaping, and habitat enhancement 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.

Idaho Fescue Quick Facts

Woolgrass Quick Facts

Zone: 4a
Zone: 3a
Height: 0.3 m (1.0 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: dry, normal
Moisture: wet
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: fast
Life span: short
Life span: short
Growth form: clump-forming
Growth form: upright, colony-forming
Spreading: seeds - low
Spreading: rhizomes - medium


Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: AB, BC, SK
Native to: MB, ON, QC, NS, NB, NL, PE
Other Names: blue bunchgrass, bluebunch fescue
Other Names: brown woolly sedge, common woolgrass, common woolly bulrush, cottongrass bulrush, marsh bulrush, wool grass