WW-Spar Bluestem

WW-Spar is an introduced warm season perennial bunchgrass with an upright growth habit as tall as about 30 inches. Spar bluestem is a valuable grass for grazing and haying when used in improved pastures and rangeland plantings. It is also useful for soil stabilization and wildlife cover.

The original material for Spar was sourced from Pakistan through the Oklahoma AES and forwarded to Woodward, OK through the Southern Regional Plant introduction Station at Griffith, GA in 1976. WW-Spar (WW-573) was selected from performance trials based on persistence, spring vigor, and drought tolerance characteristics. WW-Spar was released by the ARS and the Oklahoma AES in 1982.

WW-Spar, and other varieties of Bothriochloa ischaemum, are known as yellow bluestems. Some consider this species an old world bluestem.