I thoroughly enjoyed the ornamental grasses in my garden this fall. So much so that when I came across a selection of grasses that had been marked down for ‘end-of-season’ sale, I took advantage of the great prices and picked up another six varieties. Because the gardening season is nearly finished here, I just tucked them into an open space near the house. It should be a nice, protected spot for them to overwinter and then next spring I will relocate them to a permanent home.
Miscanthus gigantus
Grasses don’t look like much when they’re just potted-up youngsters, a few wispy blades. You’d never guess that the Giant Maiden Grass (Miscanthus gigantus), above, has the potential to grow into a big, sturdy clump standing up to 12 feet tall!
Miscanthus sinensis 'Zebrinus'
Here is another miscanthus, Zebra Grass (Miscanthus sinensis ‘Zebrinus’), which has interesting striped foliage. It gets to be 5 or 6 feet tall and makes an interesting accent.
Pennisetum Alopecuroides 'Moudry'
I also purchased three fountain grass varieties. These are more compact plants than the two miscanthus varieties above. Black-flowering Fountain Grass (Pennisetum Alopecuroides ‘Moudry’) forms a compact clump 2 to 3 feet tall and produces interesting dark seedheads. The latin name, pennisetum, translates as “feather bristle”, referring to the bristly structures surrounding the flowers on the inflorescence.
Pennisetum alopecuroides 'Redhead'
The bristles referred to in the name show up well in the above photograph of Redhead Fountain Grass (Pennisetum Alopecuroides ‘Redhead’).
Pennisetum alopecuroides 'Piglet'
The third fountain grass I picked up is Piglet (Pennisetum Alopecuroides ‘Piglet‘). It forms a neat little clump that grows to about 18 inches tall. What’s not to love about a grass called Piglet?
The grasses I currently have in my garden are native to North America, while these new additions are imports. I did get one more native grass to add to my collection, however, Northern Sea Oats (Chasmanthium latifolium). Its seedheads are very different from the plumes of miscanthus or stems of pennisetum. The geometrical-shaped seed pods hang on gracefully arching stems. I look forward to seeing all the grasses next spring. Sleep tight!
Chasmanthium latifolium
Willow House Chronicles 
Overwintering beds, what a good idea!
Beautiful grasses! I have recently learned to appreciate them myself. My fiance has 2 large, three-foot-tall yellow ceramic planters on either side of a little waterfall he created, and he plants them with purple fountain grass each spring. They are looking good right now, bursting forth, tall and wide and deeply purple, waving in the breeze.
Also, the school I go to in Northern California has some wonderful drought tolerant, water-wise grasses in it’s landscaping.
I love Chasmanthium. It never fails to amaze you with its beauty.
I first noticed Zebra Grass in a parkette near the downtown Y. It always made me smile, it’s so cheerful.
Umm, that’s the Toronto downtown Y.
Louise, there was some straggly monarda there that wasn’t getting enough sun, so I removed it at the end of the season. I have lots elsewhere in the garden. This opened up a nice space for, as it turned out, the grasses!
Zahara, thanks for dropping by. Nice to hear from you! Some of the grasses are perfect for xeric landscaping. Your Bf’s garden sounds beautiful.
Shanda, yes, I’m looking forward to seeing a big clump. Sounds like you have some too?
LB, I would have been prepared to believe it was in NB! I don’t know the To Y any better. There are some very pretty parks around the city.
[…] this is just its second summer in the garden. You can see how it looked that first fall in my post Tucked Into Bed. It’s sure come a long way since […]