Ammophila breviligulata Ammophila breviligulata

Native to sand dunes of the Atlantic Ocean from New England to South Carolina and along the shores of the Great Lakes, American Beach Grass is used extensively in dune stabilization. This grass helps build dunes by weaving intricate rhizomes, which can extend more than three feet beneath the sand and expand rapidly. American Beach Grass depends on wind to whip up the sand around its stems. This provides nutrients for the plant and stimulates more rhizomes to form and send up more shoots. It has erect, green foliage and develops long seed heads in midsummer. Ammophila breviligulata adapts to heat, wind, arid shifting sand, and salt spray.