Hi friend,

When I first started studying the ecological impacts of lawns and non-native plants, one of the most surprising facts I found was that “Kentucky bluegrass” (Poa pratensis) isn’t even native to anywhere in North America - it’s from Europe and Asia.

I’ve lived in Kentucky my entire life, but for some reason, I had to go to graduate school to learn this. And whenever I tell fellow Kentuckians about this, they’re equally shocked.

Bluegrass is actually even on KY’s official list of invasive plants

Like many other folks I’ve spoken to, I was taught in public school that when Daniel Boone explored the rolling hills of KY, he saw fields of little blue flowers and named it “Kentucky bluegrass.”

But there are a few problems with this narrative.

The first, of course, being that Boone wouldn’t have seen any bluegrass in a pre-colonized Kentucky.

The second is that bluegrass doesn’t even make blue flowers. Its flowers are more of a pinkish purple. The grass itself has a bluish tint.

But there ARE native grasses that make little blue flowers, the Sisyrinchium genus (often called blue-eyed grass), with a handful of species native to KY.

Left: Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis) Right: Blue-eyed grass (Sisyrinchium angustifolium)

Somehow through the Eurocentric curriculum of American public schools, the story got twisted, like so many other stories of the colonization of North America.

It took me way more effort than it should’ve to figure out how in the world a grass from Eurasia that’s invasive to KY became so heavily associated with my state.

The reason? Bluegrass is often used for horse pastures, and Kentucky is the horse capital of the world.

So remember that so many of the stories we’ve been told about the history, ecology, etc. of the US are just not true. Question things and do your own research.

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Tory is an ecologist and landscape consultant. He helps North American gardeners transition from using outdated and harmful but status-quo techniques to using their yards to improve the health of our planet. Along with being a gardener for over 10 years, Tory has a Master of Science degree in Sustainable Design and is certified in Regenerative Soil Science.​