Size: Tufted perennial, culms erect, to 1.2 m high

Flowering Time: J F M A M J J A S O N D. The stems disintegrate after the seedheads develop. Seeds are covered in short whitish hairs and a hairy bristle or awn that is up to 40 mm long, kinked twice. A food source for seed-eating birds, including finches. It also attracts moths and butterflies.

Requirement: By early winter, some stems start to split and fray until the stem tops are wispy tangles of fiber blowing in the wind.