Bottlebrush Grass
Elymus hystrix
- Plant Type
- Graminoid (Deciduous)
- Landscape Layer
- Herbaceous
- Sun
- ☀️ Full Sun, ⛅ Part Sun, ☁️ Shade
- Moisture
- 🏜️ Dry, 💧 Regular
- Soil
- Loam, Sand, Rocky / Acidic, Calcareous
- Bloom
- June, July, August
- Sociability
- S2 – Small groups
Pollinator Value
- 🐛 Larval Host
- Resapamea stipata, Mythimna unipuncta
- ❄️ Winter Food Source
- Seeds of Elymus genus are consumed by Gray Partridge, Snow Bunting, Greater White-fronted Goose, Tundra Swan, and Chukar. Persistent spikelets on erect culms provide accessible winter seed for ground-foraging birds. White-footed Mouse also consumes seeds.
Ecology & Conservation
- Proximity Score
- 0
- Native Status
- ✅ Outaouais ✅ Ottawa ✅ QC ✅ ON
- Closest Direction
- Local
- CEC Eco-Regions
- 5 – Northern Forests, 5.2 – Mixed Wood Shield, 5.2.3 – Algonquin/Southern Laurentians
- Rarity Notes
- Secure in Ontario (S5) but ranked Vulnerable (S3) in Quebec. Not listed under SARA or COSEWIC. National rank N5 (Secure) in Canada. Quebec vulnerability likely reflects limited populations at the northern edge of the species range. Uncommon in the Ottawa flora.
S22 S5 ON, S3 QC, N5 Canada; S26 not SARA listed; S62 Uncommon in Ottawa
- Rarity Ranks
- QC S3 – Vulnerable, ON S5 – Secure
- Migration
- Stable
- Ecological Context
- Characteristic grass of rich mesic deciduous forests and woodland understories in the Ottawa Valley, typically associated with sugar maple (Acer saccharum), American basswood (Tilia americana), and white ash (Fraxinus americana). Also found in dry-mesic woodlands and forests on hills and ridges underlain by circumneutral to basic bedrock. Gatineau Park specimens come from maple forests (erabliere) and rocky woods on Precambrian outcrops.
S61 habitat associations; S48 Gatineau specimens in erabliere and rocky woods; S7 rich deciduous forests
Permaculture & Companion Planting
Medicinal Properties ℹ
Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before using any plant for medicinal purposes. The information provided is compiled from secondary sources for educational purposes only.
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ℹ
Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before using any plant for medicinal purposes. The information provided is compiled from secondary sources for educational purposes only.
Click here for more info →- Category
- Ceremonial Medicine
S28 Iroquois Drug, Ceremonial Medicine
- Notes
- Iroquois prepared a decoction of Elymus hystrix leaves combined with reed grass rootstocks as a ceremonial medicine used to soak corn seeds before planting, described as a protective agricultural ritual (Waugh 1916).
S28 Moerman NAEB, Iroquois Drug/Ceremonial Medicine
Edibility & Foraging ℹ
Never ingest a plant unless you have 100% certainty of its identity and have consulted multiple reputable sources. The information provided in the Localeaf Plant Database is compiled from secondary sources for educational and historical purposes only.
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ℹ
Never ingest a plant unless you have 100% certainty of its identity and have consulted multiple reputable sources. The information provided in the Localeaf Plant Database is compiled from secondary sources for educational and historical purposes only.
Click here for more info →✅ Edible
- Foraging Notes
- Iroquois used a decoction of leaves and reed grass rootstocks as a ceremonial medicine to soak corn seeds before planting (Waugh 1916). Not a conventional food plant; the use is ritual/agricultural rather than dietary.
S28 Moerman Food=1 use, Iroquois ceremonial
Seed Source
- Localeaf