Miscanthus sinensis 'Variegatus' WW39 Miscan N3- (Variegated) Maiden Grass Miscan, Mature plant size: 5x4ft., variegated with green and white stripes, USDA Hardiness Zone 5, Michigan Bloom Week ISO WW39, In Garden Bed N3 for 14 MONTHS (Lowes). Planted in 2021.

Missouri Botanical Garden: 'Variegatus' is a variegated eulalia grass cultivar which typically grows in an arching, rounded clump to 5-6' tall (flower plumes can increase height to as much as 7- 9' tall). Features leaf blades variegated with green and white stripes, with white being the predominant color from a distance. Foliage fades to tan after frost. Tiny reddish flowers appear in tassel-like inflorescences which rise above the foliage clump in September, gradually turning into silvery plumes in fall as the seeds mature. Plumes persist well into winter providing good winter interest.



Photo by F.D.Richards, SE Michigan. Link to additional photos of this plant from 2021, 22:

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#Michigan, #49236, #usdaZone6, #Warmseason, #clump, #Grass, #ChineseSilverGrass, #MaidenGrass, #EulaliaGrass, #Variegatus, #Miscanthus, #WW39

I love this variegated grass. I've tried it twice in my yard and it doesn't love me.

Loretta, the 'Feather Falls' are planted in the ground but on a slope. This winter we're planning to divide one and spread it all over the atrium. It loves the environment and the grasshoppers and snails that have taken over don't seem to like it. The Giant Liriope, on the other hand, are not faring so well.

Miscanthus sinensis 'Little Zebra' WW39 Miscan F2- (Thomas Walsh, Nunica, MI) Dwarf Maiden Grass Miscan, Mature plant size: 4x4ft, horizontally-banded foliage and wine-purple flower plumes, USDA Hardiness Zone 5, Michigan Bloom Month -, In Garden Bed F2 for 14 MONTHS (Lowes). Planted in 2021.

Missouri Botanical Garden: 'Little Zebra', sometimes commonly called dwarf zebra grass, is a compact cultivar that typically grows in a clump to 3-4' tall and to 2-3' wide. It is noted for its compact size, upright form, horizontally-banded foliage and wine-purple flower plumes. Leaf blades feature, at irregular intervals, distinctive horizontal yellow bands (to 1" in height) that retain good coloration throughout the growing season. Flowers appear in corymbose panicles of 10-13 racemes (each to 6" long) above the foliage in late summer. Tiny flowers emerge gray-purple with the plumes having an overall wine-purple coloration. As seeds begin to form, the flower/seed plumes fade to creamy tan, often providing some winter interest. Foliage fades to tan after frost. U.S. Plant Patent PP13,008 issued September 24, 2002.

Peony croaked in this spot.


Photo by F.D.Richards, SE Michigan. Link to additional photos of this plant from 2021, 22:

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#Michigan, #49236, #usdaZone6, #Warmseason, #clump, #Grass, #ChineseSilverGrass, #MaidenGrass, #EulaliaGrass, #LittleZebra, #Dwarf, #WW39

That's a nice size to work with.

Turns out I have Feather Falls and also a couple of Ribbon Falls. I got them at a plant sale I volunteered at early in the season. They are still sitting in pots waiting for a spot. They are very glossy compared to other carexes I have. Just have to figure out where to use them.

Make sure you give them space. I didn't expect them to get quite as big as they did.

Good to know. I have another carex that I have to dig up that got much bigger than the others also. I don't know the name but it's nothing to write home about.

I bought the peppermint stick grass (Arundo donax) and it was gorgeous variegation. Having read about this grass being invasive I was strict and kept it in a container. Despite me burying the whole container in the vegetable patch for winter heeling-in, the grass died and did not return. So much for it being indestructible.

Also have some of the above. The black mondo and the golden Japanese forest grass are current faves. I also was considering Carex Snowcap as I like white grasses. But, now I have nowhere to put it until another heuchera dies.

As for real lawn grass, someone here in the Boston area spent years developing a new type that is resistant to drought. The roots are up to 4-ft long! So once you decide on a lawn there is no going back, I expect.
https://www.wcvb.com/article/m...

Exactly and if it creeps into the beds, good luck getting it out.

Here are a couple of patches of Asian sweet flag I saw at a public garden recently. The soil is very moist here and it is shady. It doesn't do as well in my yard.

Acorus gramineus 'Minimus Aureus' - Dwarf Sweet Flag.

Acorus gramineus - Sweet Flag

Interesting this carex is very happy in my floating pond planter.

I bought Carex oshimensis 'Feather Falls' and
Carex oshimensis 'Ribbon Falls' last year. neither one made it thru the winter. They are rated as zone 5, but do not do well in a rural setting. I am in zone 6, but most plants rated at zone 6 do not over winter for me.

I lost C. oshimensis Everillo, too - I presume it died since I let it get totally smothered by leaves, though I guess it could also be that it isn't as hardy as labeled.

I had a similar problem with Acorus gramineus Minimus Aurea. I had a nicely expanding beautiful patch of it but I let it get smothered by both leaves as well as encroaching bigger neighboring plants. I just cleared out the area and surprisingly found the Minimus Aurea looking pretty good under all the mess. I expect it to rebound nicely next season. I'll try to take better care of it this time.

I had the opposite problem, Scott. Not exactly a grass but the most beautiful groundcover ever - Lithodora "Gold n' Sapphires".
https://www.terranovanurseries...
It is evergreen, and supposed to be hardy to zone 5, but the instructions said to cover it over with mulch over winter. I remember thinking to myself "but surely it will die from lack of light if it is evergreen - anyhow I am zone 6b", so ignored the instructions and it died. I say "it" but I actually purchased a few of them . I think I have 1 branch of 1 plant left still alive.
So gorgeous, but not worth the effort. If you have to cover a plant with winter mulch I do not agree it is hardy in that zone.

I have no need for a plant that needs to be mulched over winter. I have many grasses that are rated at zone 5 that do just fine.

I planted both of my new Carex plants at the gardens edge, so I could easily mow them down at years end. Never got the chance:) I think they were evergreen so burning was out of there question...

Orion, my opinion most of Terra Nova perennials are really expensive annuals. Hardly any of them ever lasted and I tried a few.

Frank, I will let you know how Feather Falls and Ribbon Falls do. I have a few carex and some have been around for a few years, but some rot over winter.

Bea, your carex looks very happy.

Pennisetum alopecuroides 'Jambalaya' WW43 Fountain Grass G2- (Wayne Hanna) Fountain Grass, Mature plant size: 3ft, Showy, silvery to pinkish-white, bristly, bottle brush-like flower spikes arch outward from the clump in late summer like water spraying from a fountain (hence the common name)., USDA Hardiness Zone 6-9, Michigan Bloom Month -, In Garden Bed G2 for 158 DAYS (Bluestone). Planted in 2022.

Missouri Botanical Garden: Pennisetum alopecuroides, commonly called fountain grass, is a warm season ornamental grass which typically grows in graceful, spreading clumps from 2-3' tall and as wide. Features narrow, medium to deep green leaves (to 1/2" wide) in summer, changing to golden yellow in fall and fading to beige in late fall. Foliage usually remains attractive throughout the winter. Showy, silvery to pinkish-white, bristly, bottle brush-like flower spikes arch outward from the clump in late summer like water spraying from a fountain (hence the common name). Flower spikes turn brownish as the seeds form, and spikes usually persist until late fall or early winter before shattering. Many excellent fountain grass cultivars are available in commerce, ranging in height from 1-5' and featuring a variety of different flower colors (purples, pinks or whites) and autumn foliage.

Bluestone Perennials: Blushed silver-pink plumes take center stage as they launch like rockets amidst the slender blades of cascading green. The bottle-brush plumes complement any color palette and are valued for their texture and contrast. Does not self-sow.

Fountain Grass developed by Wayne Hanna at the University of Georgia.

Photo by F.D.Richards, SE Michigan. Link to additional photos of this plant from 2022:

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#Michigan, #49236, #usdaZone6, ., #Grass, #perennial, #monocot, #FountainGrass, #Warmseason, #Clump, #Jambalaya, #Pennisetum, #WW43

Nice fall color on that one.

Miscanthus sinensis 'Adagio' WW45 Miscan R2- (Dwarf) Dwarf Maiden Grass Miscan, Mature plant size: 4x4ft,, narrow, silver-gray blades which turn yellow in fall., USDA Hardiness Zone 5, Michigan Bloom Month -, In Garden Bed R2 for 16 MONTHS (Lowes). Planted in 2021.

Missouri Botanical Garden:'Adagio' is a dwarf eulalia grass cultivar which is one of the shortest of the many Miscanthus cultivars available in commerce today, typically growing 3 to 4 feet tall (5 feet in bloom.) It is an upright, warm season, clump-forming ornamental grass which features extremely narrow, silver-gray blades which turn yellow in fall. Tiny pink-tinged flowers appear in tassel-like inflorescences above the foliage in late summer, gradually turning into creamy white plumes by fall as the seeds mature. Foliage and flower plumes persist well into winter providing good winter interest.



Photo by F.D.Richards, SE Michigan. Link to additional photos of this plant from 2021, 22:

https://www.flickr.com/search/...

#Michigan, #49236, #usdaZone6, #Warmseason, #clump, #Grass, #ChineseSilverGrass, #MaidenGrass, #EulaliaGrass, #Adagio, #Dwarf, #WW45

Calamagrostis x acutiflora 'Karl Foerster' WW46 Feather Reed Grass S1- (Feather Reed Grass) Feather Reed Grass, Mature plant size: 4x2ft., narrow green foliage, airy 12 in. seed heads., USDA Hardiness Zone 5, Michigan Bloom Month 5, In Garden Bed S1 for 16 MONTHS (Menards). Planted in 2021.

Digging Dog Nursery: Named for pioneering German nurseryman Karl Foerster, this selection bears loose and airy 12 in. seed heads, which tighten to slender plumes by midsummer. Rising above 2 ft. clumps of narrow green foliage, the inflorescences create an ideal semitransparent veiling effect. Plant with deep green Viburnums to accentuate its golden flowering stems.


Photo by F.D.Richards, SE Michigan. Link to additional photos of this plant from 2021, 22:

https://www.flickr.com/search/...

#Michigan, #49236, #usdaZone6, #ClumpForming, #CoolSeason, #wet, #Grass, #FeatherReed, #KarlFoerster, #CalamagrostisXacutiflora, #Calamagrostis, #WW46