Florida Wildflower Haiku & Art, Purple Muhly Grass, Mulenbergia spp.

Tuesday morning Florida native plant and wildflower haiku, Purple Muhly Grass

Florida Wildflower Poetry & Art, Purple Muhly grass, Mulenbergia spp. by Kevin Songer

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sweetgrass baskets
muhly and pine needles weave
art of carrying rice
…

Purple muhly grass lines the median of many native plant landscaped downtown streets in Florida. During late summer the blooms form a cloud-like top to the grass in brilliant white, purple and pink shades. This grass gives important communal habitat to birds and small mammals and once established is extremely drought tolerant. Muhly grass has a long history of ethnobotanical uses by native Americans and early settlers.  Woven from plant leaf blades, early plantation workers carried rice and other goods up from the fields in muhly grass baskets and satchels.

Green Gardening Matters' post on muhly grass offers helpful hints on growing the grass as well as more of the interesting history of the plant.