Ornamental Grasses : Landscaping : Home & Garden Television

Embellish your landscape with ornamental grasses.

Ornamental grasses comprise a particular plant group whose members are beautiful, inexpensive, easy to find, and easy to grow in all types of soil. Once established, these plants need next to nothing in the way of supplemental water, fertilizer, or maintenance.

Ornamental grasses have been around for decades, but in the last few years they've really begun to grab the attention of landscape designers and weekend gardeners alike. Whether planted individually as eye-catching specimens, in groups, or in containers, few plants offer as much in the way of year-round interest and beauty while thriving on so little attention.

There are all kinds of ornamental grasses available from nurseries and from mail-order sources, and there are a number of ornamental grass look-a-likes as well, including such familiar plants as irises, daylilies, mondo grass, liriope and even yucca.

Maiden grass

True ornamental grasses that top the list both in terms of shear beauty and availability are those in the genus Miscanthus. Miscanthus sinensis 'Gracillimus', or simply maiden grass, is a clump-forming perennial that grows up to 6 feet tall. It gets wider at the base over time, and in some cases it may gradually begin to thin out in the center as well. Maiden grass is one of more than 40 Miscanthus cultivars and varieties, all of which are native to China and Japan. They thrive in Zones 4 or 5 through Zone 9. The leaves of these warm-season grasses appear in early spring and are topped by showy plumes in late summer to early fall.

Japanese silver grass 'Cabaret'

Two of my favorite Miscanthus cultivars are also known as Japanese silver grass. They include the variegated form known as 'Cabaret', and the late blooming 'Morning Light'. One of the biggest and broadest members of the Miscanthus family is the zebra grass. A similar cultivar known as porcupine grass grows much more upright, but there's so little difference between the two that even experts get confused.

Japanese silver grass 'Morning Light'

Zebra grass

Purple fountain grass

Right behind Miscanthus in terms of popularity and availability are members of the genus Pennisetum, known collectively as the fountain grasses. They too are clump-forming, warm-season grasses that thrive in full sun and range in height from 2 to 4 feet. Most are hardy in Zones 5 through 9.

Not all Pennisetums are perennials. For example, the popular variety of purple fountain grass, which is native to Australia, is an annual, which is why it's often seen growing in containers. The plumes or flower spikes of the Pennisetums are more cylindrical than those of the Miscanthus and are often described as bottle-brushes or foxtails. Depending on the cultivar, they range in color from cream to reddish-purple to almost black. The dwarf variety is one of the most popular and easy-to-find Pennisetums.

Probably the most photographed ornamental grass is pampas grass, because it reaches heights of up to 15 feet and produces huge, beautiful plumes. Its hardiness range is limited to Zones 8 through 10. Those of you who live in Zones 6 and 7 and who want a large grass should consider an alternative from the genus Erianthus. It's commonly sold as hardy pampas grass or ravenna grass.

Giant reed grass

Another giant grass is Arundo donax or giant reed. Native to southern Europe, this grass, known as the bamboo of the New World, is considered a weed in many areas, because unlike most other ornamental grasses, it can spread quickly, especially in moist areas. If kept in check it makes an excellent specimen and an effective windbreak. As a side note, giant reed canes are still the source of reeds for various woodwind instruments.

Northern sea oats

One of the few shade-tolerant ornamental grasses is Chasmanthium latifollum , or northern sea oats. It's hardy in Zones 5 to 9, and it does extremely well in damp, shaded locations, including coastal areas. It has a tendency to re-seed, but not to the point where it becomes invasive, so don't worry about it taking over your garden.

Japanese forest grass

Another shade-tolerant grass is the hakone grass, also known as Japanese forest grass. It's available in a green form and the golden variegated variety. It needs a little morning to midday sun to produce its distinctive color, but too much sun will scorch it. This grass turns an incredible pinkish-red in the fall.

'Red Baron' bloodgrass

Another Japanese grass is Imperata cylindrica, or 'Red Baron' bloodgrass. Bloodgrass is hardy in Zones 6 to 9, and its vertical leaves emerge green in spring, then gradually turn red during the summer and fall. Although this is a well-behaved, clump-forming grass, a lot of people mistakenly believe that it's invasive.

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