English: Sweet grass; Manna grass; Mary's grass; Vanilla grass; Holy grass; Bison grass.
Name: Hierochloe means "holy grass" and odorata means "fragrant".
Synonym: Anthoxanthum nitens.
Region: North America, southern Canada, New England; northern Europe.
Habitat: marshland, between dune and salt marsh, peak on the edge of these ranges; little preference for nutrients or water content; sensitive for pH and salinity.; cold resistant.
Ecology: associated with Juncus balticus in marshlands, with Ammophila breviligulata in dune ecosystems; only browsed by Ochotona princeps and European bison; white-tailed deer, elk or American bison may graze on it.
Content: coumarin, with bitter taste; phytol; ,
Culture: sacred sweet scent to the presence of coumarin; "Hair of Mother Earth"; one of the four sacred medicines.
Use: basketry; perfume; herbal medicine; flavor candy, tobacco, soft drinks, perfumes, tea, vodka; ceremonial smudging, incense, attracting good spirits; natural mosquito repellent. I
BotanyHerb; hardy; perennial; to 20 cm high.
Leaves: lack rigid stems, grow outward horizontally, base broad and white, purple-red, without hairs, underside shiny, without hairs; purple colored indicates a phosphorus-deficient soil.
Seeds require a period of cold temperatures before germinating; germinate rate of 25-50%; require constant moisture for sprouting 10 to 14 days later.