Ornamental Grass: Varieties & Uses
If you need an easy plant that doesn’t mind harsh conditions, try an ornamental grass! Ornamental grasses are low maintenance and tough, making them excellent picks to withstand common issues like salt, rough wind, poor soil, and drought. They are perfect for fast-growing privacy screening, backdrops for colorful perennials, borders and ponds, and even containers! This year we have our largest selection of grasses ever… from elegant maiden grasses to dwarf fountain grass. Try these top 5 popular varieties!
Pennisetum orientale ‘Karley Rose’
Fountain grass with unique rose-purple plumes that bloom from June through fall. Upright habit reaches about 3-4 feet with flowers and 3-4 feet wide. Excellent for background planting, borders, cottage gardening, foundations massing, and as a specimen!
Pennisetum alopecuroides ‘Hameln’
Dwarf fountain grass with fuzzy, wheat-colored flower heads that bloom June through late Fall. Arching, compact habit matures to 2-3 feet high and only 18-24 inches wide. Resistant to insect and disease problems. A great choice for mixed borders, cut and dried flower arrangements, rock gardens, and around ponds or streams.
Schizachyrium ‘Standing Ovation‘
A little bluestem variety featuring wide leaf blades and a rigid upright habit of bluish-green foliage with red tips. Purplish-bronze flowers appear in August followed by fluffy white seed heads that can last into winter. This plant puts on an amazing show of oranges, reds, yellows, and purplish-browns in the fall! For winter interest, wait to cut back until early spring. ‘Standing Ovation’ looks best in groups placed along borders and in cottage and prairie gardens. Matures to around 2-3 feet tall and 15-18 inches wide.
Miscanthus sinensis ‘Gracillimus’
Long and fine-textured variety of maiden grass with a graceful appearance. Grows in a dense cluster, reaching around 5-6 feet tall and 3-4 feet wide. Dramatic silvery plumes appear in late summer that turn golden-bronze after frost. Great for fall and winter interest! Most often utilized as an accent plant, along borders, in privacy screens, or by the water. Excellent pest and disease resistance!
Pennisetum setaceum ‘Rubrum’
Our favorite thriller in fall containers! This more tender, annual fountain grass demands attention with its deep reddish purple foliage topped with soft red-burgundy flower plumes. Blooms last from July through frost. In addition to containers, ‘Rubrum,’ is used in borders, cottage gardening, foundation planting, and as a focal point. Reaches 3-5 feet tall and 2-4 feet wide. Drought tolerant and deer resistant!
