bear grass
American Heritage Dictionary:
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bear grass
n.
- A western North American perennial herb (Xerophyllum tenax) in the lily family, having a dense clump of basal grasslike leaves and a tall stalk bearing a terminal raceme of small whitish flowers.
- Any of several similar North American plants, especially species of the genera Nolina and Yucca.
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia:
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bear grass
Either of two species of North American plants that make up the genus Xerophyllum, in the family Melanthiaceae. The western species, X. tenax, also known as elk grass, squaw grass, and fire lily, is a smooth, light-green mountain perennial with a stout, unbranched stem and grasslike, rough-edged leaves at the bottom. It flowers at five to seven years, bearing a large cluster of small creamy-white flowers at the top of the stem. The turkey beard (X. asphodeloides) of southern North America is a similar plant that grows in dry pine barrens. In the southern and southwestern U.S., the name bear grass is given to various kinds of yucca and to the camas (Camassia scilloides) and the aloelike Dasylirion texanum.
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Xerophyllum tenax
"Beargrass" redirects here. It may also refer to members of the genus Nolina.
| Xerophyllum tenax | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Monocots |
| Order: | Liliales |
| Family: | Melanthiaceae |
| Genus: | Xerophyllum |
| Species: | X. tenax |
| Binomial name | |
| Xerophyllum tenax (Pursh) Nutt. |
|
| Synonyms | |
|
Helonias tenax |
|
Xerophyllum tenax is a grasslike perennial in the family Melanthiaceae, closely related to lilies. It is known by several common names, including bear grass, squaw grass, soap grass, quip-quip, and Indian basket grass.
It can grow to 15-150 cm in height and grows in bunches with the leaves wrapped around and extending from a small stem at ground level. The leaves are 30-100 cm long and 2-6 mm wide, dull olive green with toothed edges. The slightly fragrant white flowers emerge from a tall stalk that bolts from the base. When the flowers are in bloom they are tightly packed at the tip of the stalk like an upright club. The plant is found mostly in western North America from British Columbia south to California and east to Wyoming, in subalpine meadows and coastal mountains, and also on low ground in the California coastal fog belt. It is common on the Olympic Peninsula and in the Cascades, northern Sierra Nevada and Rockies.
X. tenax is an important part of the fire ecology of regions where it is native. It has rhizomes which survive fire that clears dead and dying plant matter from the surface of the ground. The plant thrives with periodic burns and is often the first plant to sprout in a scorched area.
This species was long used by Native Americans who wove it into baskets. Its fibrous leaves, which turn from green to white as they dry, are tough, durable, and easily dyed and manipulated into tight waterproof weaves.
External links
Media related to Xerophyllum tenax at Wikimedia Commons
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American Heritage Dictionary
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Britannica Concise Encyclopedia
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 1994-2012 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved. Read more
