Grass or grass-like · Poaceae

Velvet panicum

Dichanthelium scoparium

Velvet panicum is recorded as native to 25 states and territories in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in 508 counties of those states by USDA PLANTS.

Recorded native ranges can include long-established populations that spread from gardens; check your state’s native plant society list for local guidance. How native status is decided.

Key facts · USDA PLANTS

Velvet panicum at a glance

Native in: 508 counties, across 25 states and territories
Estimated cold hardiness: Zone 3b PLANTS minimum temperature −38°F
Mature height: 4.3 ft PLANTS mature height
Light and water: Tolerates shade Medium water use

Estimated cold hardiness: zone 3b. PLANTS gives a minimum temperature of −38°F; zone 3b winters bottom out at −35°F, the coldest half-zone that stays within that limit.

Counties where it is native

The 15 counties with the most ZIP codes among the 508 where it is listed.

Native counties by state

Arkansas 43 counties
Connecticut statewide record
Delaware 3 counties
District of Columbia 1 county
Florida 19 counties
Georgia 26 counties
Illinois 3 counties
Indiana 2 counties
Kansas 3 counties
Kentucky 24 counties
Louisiana 44 counties
Maryland 2 counties
Massachusetts 3 counties
Mississippi 50 counties
Missouri 21 counties
New Jersey 12 counties
New York 6 counties
North Carolina 69 counties
Oklahoma 3 counties
Pennsylvania 6 counties
Rhode Island 1 county
South Carolina 32 counties
Tennessee 33 counties
Texas 40 counties
Virginia 62 counties

Growing traits

Values from the PLANTS characteristics record. “Not recorded” means PLANTS has no value; nothing here is estimated except the zone.

Growth

Growth habit: Graminoid
Duration: Perennial
Mature height: 4.3 ft
Growth rate: Rapid
Growth form: Bunch
Shape: Erect
Lifespan: Short
Active growth period: Summer

Light and water

Shade tolerance: Tolerant (tolerates shade)
Moisture use: Medium water use
Drought tolerance: Low
Tolerance of waterlogged soil: None
Precipitation range: 30 to 55 in per year

Soil

Soil textures: Coarse and medium
pH range: 4.5 to 7.5
Lime (CaCO₃) tolerance: High
Salinity tolerance: None
Fertility requirement: Medium
Minimum root depth: 6 in

Climate

Minimum temperature: −38°F
Estimated cold hardiness: Zone 3b and warmer
Minimum frost-free days: 120
Fire tolerance: None

Flowers, leaves and fruit

Flower color: Green
Showy flowers: No
Bloom period: Summer
Foliage color: Gray-Green
Showy in fall: No
Keeps leaves: No
Fruit color: Yellow

Other

Toxicity: None
Nitrogen fixation: None
Nursery availability: No Known Source
Family: Poaceae
PLANTS symbol: DISC3

Source & data date

Source: USDA NRCS PLANTS Database: county distribution records, native status and plant characteristics. CC0 (public domain dedication, per the data.gov catalog record).; Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP): native or introduced status by state. CC BY 3.0.; USGS US-RIIS (ver. 2.0): species listed as introduced are excluded. CC0.
Citation: USDA, NRCS. 2026. The PLANTS Database (https://plants.usda.gov, 11/04/2026). National Plant Data Team, Greensboro, NC USA.; Govaerts R. (ed.) (2026). WCVP: World Checklist of Vascular Plants. Facilitated by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Data file dated 2026-06-04, http://sftp.kew.org/pub/data-repositories/WCVP/ (retrieved 2026-11-04). Paper: Govaerts R. et al. (2021) The World Checklist of Vascular Plants, a continuously updated resource for exploring global plant diversity. Scientific Data 8, 215.
Data date: Retrieved from PLANTS on November 4, 2026; WCVP data file dated June 4, 2026.
Scope: Dichanthelium scoparium (PLANTS symbol DISC3).
Method: A species is listed when it is recorded as native to the state in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in the county by USDA PLANTS. Species PLANTS labels both native and introduced are listed separately. Full method · All sources

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