Taxon Report

Poa lettermanii Vasey

Letterman's blue grass

Print Report

Taxon Summary

Poa lettermanii, commonly known as Letterman's blue grass, is a perennial herb in the Poaceae that is found in California and elsewhere. It occurs within Alpine boulder and rock field (sandy, and rocky), growing at elevations from 3500 to 4265 meters. Poa lettermanii is ranked 2B.3, Plants Rare, Threatened, or Endangered in California, But More Common Elsewhere; Not very threatened in California.

Classification


Scientific Name:	Poa lettermanii Vasey
Common Name:	Letterman's blue grass
Family:	Poaceae
Element Code:	PMPOA4Z1H0
USDA Plants Symbol:	POLE3
Synonyms/Other Names:

Ecology and Life History


Lifeform:	perennial herb
Blooming Period: Jul-Aug	Jul-Aug
Elevation:	3500-4265 (11485-13995)
General Habitats:	Alpine boulder and rock field
Microhabitat:
Microhabitat Details:

Conservation Status


CA Rare Plant Rank:	2B.3
Global Rank:	G4
State Rank:	S3
State List:	None
Fed List:	None
Other Status:
CRPR Changes:	changed from 2.3 to 2B.3 on 2013-06-12

Occurrence Data from the CNDDB


Total Occurrences:	11
Element Occurrence Ranks:
Excellent (A)	0
Good (B)	0
Fair (C)	0
Poor (D)	0
None (X)	0
Unknown (U)	11

Location


California Endemic: False
California Counties and Islands: Name (Code)
Fresno (FRE), Inyo (INY), Mono (MNO), Tulare (TUL)
Quads: Name (Quad Code)
Aberdeen (3611883), Cirque Peak (3611842), Juniper Mtn. (3711862), Kearsarge Peak (3611873), Mount Tom (3711836), Mount Whitney (3611853), Mt. Barcroft (3711852), Mt. Clarence King (3611874), Mt. Darwin (3711826), Mt. Hilgard (3711837), Mt. Thompson (3711825), Mt. Williamson (3611863), North Palisade (3711815), White Mtn. Peak (3711863)

Threat List Data from the CNDDB


Threat List Total:	0
EOs with Threat Listed:	Total EOs	% of EOs
	0	%

Notes



See Contributions from the U.S. National Herbarium 1:273 (1893) for original description, and Systematic Botany 16(3):522-523 (1991) for taxonomic treatment.
Threats:

Taxonomy:

Selected References

Citation California Native Plant Society, Rare Plant Program. 2025. Rare Plant Inventory (online edition, v9.5.1). Website https://www.rareplants.cnps.org [accessed 5 November 2025].