Andropogon gerardii
Common Name: big bluestem, turkeyfoot, turkeyclaw, bluejoint
Scientific Name: Andropogon gerardii Vitman
Family Name: Poaceae (Graminae) - Grass Family
Identification Notes
Life Cycle:
native perennial, reproducing by seed and short, scaly rhizomes that slowly expand to form large clumps 
Culms:
upright, stout, solid, glabrous branching above, grooved on one side, nodes often bluish in color
Leaves:
blades flat to rolled inward toward top, margins very rough, long hairs near the base, tapering to sharp pointed tip, prominent midvein; rolled in bud; auricles absent; ligule membranous, short; margins fringed with hair; sheaths open, slightly keeled, smooth, often with purple base, lower sheaths sometimes with long silky hairs
Seedheads:
panicle of 2-6 racemes, racemes usually consisting of 3 digitate racemes, resemble a “turkey’s foot”, terminal 
