Plant Guide > Grasses > Purple Finger Grass

Purple Finger Grass

Purple Finger GrassPurple Finger-grass, or Slender Finger-grass, (Digitaria filiformis) is a native species and therefore is not so often found near dwelling houses. It is an exceedingly delicate grass in stem, leaf, and inflorescence, the filiform spikes carrying out the slender character of the plant by remaining nearly erect instead of spreading from the stem.

This grass is often so slender as to be little noticed, but in early autumn we may frequently find it blooming in sandy fields and by dry roadsides where the Wild Oat-grass still retains dry and faded panicles of springtime.

The glistening stems of Purple Finger-grass are often beautifully tinged in rose and purple, colours which, though not looked for among the grasses, are theirs during many months of the year.