Single Record
Participant Info
- Species
- Anthoxanthum hirtum [Hierochloë hirta] [Anthoxanthum hirtum subsp. arcticum] [Anthoxanthum nitens] [Hierochloë subsp. arcticum] [Hierochloë odorata], etc.
- Family
- Poaceae
- CommonName
- sweetgrass, holygrass
- Presence
- yes
- Status
- native
- EarliestDate
- 1898
- LatestDate
- 2014
- Ecosystem
- montane, subalpine, tundra
- Geobotanical
- Garitas, SSanjuans, Culebras, NCristos
- Counties
- Alamosa, Costilla, Hinsdale, Mineral, Saguache
- Passes
- Spring Creek
- WildlifePreserves
- Other Localities
- PhotoRecords
- Comments
- NEED IN SITU PHOTOS. Sweet grass, named for its fragrance, has been vouchered somewhat often from the mountain ranges on both sides of the Valley. Anthoxanthum hirtum [Hierochloë hirta] can be found from the upper montane to tundra, growing in meadows and on alpine knolls. Note that Allred et al. (2020) find only Anthoxanthum odoratum [Hierochloë odorata] in New Mexico, the exotic species. Yet BONAP, under the name Anthoxanthum hirtum, shows the species continuing down the Rio Grande drainage through New Mexico (but no farther down stream). And BONAP shows Anthoxanthum odoratum found in only one county of New Mexico, Colfax. POWO (2025) says Anthoxanthum hirtum is a synonym of Anthoxanthum nitens. iNaturalist (2025) sticks with Anthoxanthum hirtum. The source of the sweet smell is coumarin, a crystalline solid whose derivative, the fungal metabolite dicoumarol, acts as a anticoagulant and is poisonous to animals.
- Annotation