Big Bluestem String Band

Our name pays homage to our prairie heritage. Big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii) once dominated the tall-grass prairies of North America, forming rippling waves of amber taller than a man on horseback from the Rocky Mountains to the eastern forests. The prairies are largely gone, but big bluestem is still an important forage grass in parts of the Mississippi valley and a dominant component in prairie hay.The “King of Grasses” produces better quality and greater amounts of forage than any other native American prairie grass. Cows and bison love it. Big bluestem is the official Illinois prairie grass.