Palouse prairie

views updated May 18 2018

Palouse prairie A distinctive tract of prairie in the Palouse region of south-eastern Washington (USA), but similar prairie also extends into Oregon, southern Idaho, and northern Utah. A rich growth of bunch grasses, especially Agropyron spicatum (blue-bunch wheatgrass), occurs on the deep, highly fertile soils formed in aeolian parent materials. Much of the Palouse prairie is now cultivated for wheat.

Palouse prairie

views updated May 14 2018

Palouse prairie A distinctive tract of prairie in the Palouse region of south-eastern Washington (USA), but similar prairie also extends into Oregon, southern Idaho, and northern Utah. A rich growth of bunch grasses, especially Agropyron spicatum (blue-bunch wheatgrass), occurs on the deep, highly fertile soils formed in aeolian parent materials. Much of the Palouse prairie is now cultivated for wheat.