Winning Combinations with Ornamental Grasses

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Winning Combinations with
Ornamental Grasses Mary Hockenberry
Meyer Professor, University of
Minnesota
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Use grasses in combination with other
perennials.
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Miscanthus, little bluestem and feather reedgrass
with perovskia
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Fine textured grasses can be too uniform.
Coarse texture provides relief for our eyes.
Tibouchina grandiflora tropical shrub
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Grasses with evergreens Asian look good for
screens and background
silver spike grass, Spodiopogon sibiricus
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• Carex Ice Dance
• big seller in zones 5
• marginally hardy in
• zone 4

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Hakonechloa macra Albo-Striata striped
hakone grass
Hakonechloa macra Aureola yellow hakone
grass
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variegated grass white --- with red or rose
colored perennials
Phalaris arundinacea Feeseys Form
RHIZOMES
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Dwarf Ribbon Grass
picta
Leuto-picta
Ribbongrass Phalaris
Feeseys Form
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variegated Miscanthus with red, pink or
rose colored flowers
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Miscanthus sinensis Variegatus
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Hakone grass Hakonechloa macra Aureola
Albo-striata with Phlox divaricata, woodland
phlox
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Hakone grass with yellow and reds other hot
colors.
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Miscanthus Strictus and Zebrinus with
yellow flowers
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grey-blues soothing blending colors to highlight
other colors
soft white not screaming white Miscanthus
sinensis Morning Light marginally hardy in
zone 4
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Festuca 'Elijah Blue' blue fescue
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Fescue cannot tolerate hot, or wet locations.
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Helictotrichon sempervirens, blue oatgrass,
looks great with pastel colors and burgundy
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Melinis nerviglumis Pink Crystals ANNUAL
may self-seed blue-grey foliage
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Melinis nerviglumis Pink Crystals ANNUAL
may self-seed blue-grey foliage
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Schizachyrium scoparium MinnBlue A Blue
HeavenTM new U of M little bluestem
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blue and pink blue lyme grass and roses
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Invasive rhizomes are best controlled with
cement or pavement.
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Calamagrostis xacutiflora 'Overdam' Overdam
reedgrass and Avalanche (inset)
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Overdam
Avalanche
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Calamagrostis xacutiflora 'Karl
Foerster' feather reedgrass with roses
Champlain
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Calamagrostis xacutiflora 'Karl
Foerster' feather reedgrass with
Asiatic lilies
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Calamagrostis brachytricha vase-shaped fall
blooming reedgrass
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Schizachyrium, little bluestem
MinnBlue A Blue Heaven TM
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Blue HeavenTM in fall
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Three Miscanthus

• Miscanthus sinensisBunchgrass many cultivars
• Miscanthus xgiganteus
• Giant, no seeds, biomass interest
• Miscanthus sacchariflorus
• rhizomes, not recommended
• as an ornamental
• Miscanthus should only be planted
• in managed landscapes where it can
• be watched for self-seeding.
• http//horticulture.cfans.umn.edu/miscanthus/defau
  lt.htm

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Miscanthus should only be planted in managed
landscapes where it can be
watched for self-seeding. httpwww.horticulture.c
oafes.umn.edu/miscanthus
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Miscanthus Autumn Light
Susurration wind through plants, whisper audio
interest
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Miscanthus xGiganteus
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Miscanthus sacchariflorus, RHIZOMES
Route 30 east of Ames, Iowa
Hardin County, Rt 175, Iowa
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Three Miscanthus

• Miscanthus sinensisBunchgrass many names
• Miscanthus xgiganteus
• Giant, no seeds
• Miscanthus sacchariflorus
• Rhizomes, not recommended as an ornamental
• Miscanthus should only be planted in managed
  landscapes where it can be watched for
  self-seeding.
• httpwww.horticulture.cfans.umn.edu/miscanthus

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Molinia 'Windspiel' tall moorgrass
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Dry Sites
Carex pensylvanica pa sedge, oak sedge
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Panicum virgatum
switchgrass
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Panicum virgatumDallas Blues
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Panicum virgatum Shenandoah
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Northwind
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Panicum virgatum Cloud 9, huge plant
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Indian grass Sorghastrum nutans Sioux
Blue and Indian Steel
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Prairie dropseed lawn, Sporobolus heterolepis.
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prairie dropseed is very fine textured
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monocromatic colors pink
Pennisetum setaceum crimson fountain
grass ANNUAL, some seed
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monochromatic colors purple crimson
fountaingrass Pennisetum setaceum Rubrum
tender annual, no seed
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monocromatic colors purple crimson
fountaingrass Pennisetum setaceum Rubrum
tender annual, no seed
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Likes hot conditions and sandy, light soil

Pennisetum Purple Majesty Jester
(shorter)
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Prince elephantgrass
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monocromatic colors white
Pennisetum villosum feathertop
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feathertop with alyssum and nicotiana
Carex Snowline with firefly impatiens
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Carex comens Amazon Mist
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wet sites
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Carex muskingumemsis Oehme
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Carex testacea Prairie Fire
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Nasella tenuissima, Mexican feathergrass
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Chasmanthium latifolium, riveroats, Northern
seaoats bronze flowers
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Melica Red Spires self-seeds
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Carex buchananii Toffee Twist Red Rooster,
several ANNUAL brown sedges
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annual maintenance recommended spring
cutback April
Division optional early spring to increase
plants
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Research based on nearly 20 years of growing
grasses in USDA Zones 3 and 4
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Imperata, bloodgrass
Shenandoah switchgrass
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