Purple love grass, Eragrostis pectinacea
 
Purple love grass creates an effect of purple-red haze floating above the ground when it blooms in July and August. It is a beautiful warm-season grass with a delicate, airy and graceful texture.
 
Ecology:
Purple love grass provides habitat and food for wildlife. Birds use the dry panicles for nesting, and especially ground-feeding birds eat their seeds as well as small mammals.  Insect herbivores, such as grasshoppers and leafhoppers, feed on all parts of grasses. Purple love grass supports native grass moths as a larval host.
 
Growing conditions:
This grass prefers full sun and thrives in well-drained, sandy or gravelly soils. It is drought-tolerant once established and tolerates poor soils. It thrives in dry to average soil conditions and is low maintenance. It can self-seed in disturbed areas.