Ornamental Grasses
Unless noted, these are sun lovers. Grasses add great texture to the landscape in all seasons!
Big Bluestem, Blackhawks
Height - 5'
Width - 2'
Bloom Time - Late summer
Seedhead Color - Dark purple
Foliage emerges dark green to dark purple, turning nearly black by fall. Thrive in dry, unfertile soils. Warm season grass that is drought tolerant once established.
Big Bluestem, Holy Smoke
Height - 4-6'
Width - 2'
Bloom Time - Late summer
Seedhead Color - Dark purple
Silver foliage with smoky purple and red highlights from May- October. Very strong, upright stems. Thrive in dry, unfertile soils. Warm season grass that is drought tolerant once established.
Big Bluestem, Red October
Height - 60-72"
Width - 2'
Bloom Time - Late summer
Seedhead Color - Fiery red
Dark green foliage turns burgundy to red. Thrive in dry, unfertile soils. Warm season grass that is drought tolerant once established.
Feather Reed Grass, Avalanche
Height - 3-4'
Width - 2'
Bloom Time - Summer
Seedhead Color - Tan/wheat
Early foliage is bright green with white stripes. One of the few grasses that performs well in partial shade. Cool season grass.
Feather Reed Grass, Fall Blooming
Height - 42"
Width - 3'
Bloom Time - Fall
Seedhead Color - Tan
Rosy colord seedheads turn tan and last through winter. This grass has an upright, arching habit. Cool season grass.
Feather Reed Grass, Hello Spring
Height - 3-4'
Width - 1.5-2'
Bloom Time - Fall
Seedhead Color - Tan
Cool season grass. Early to set seedheads, typically by the 4th of July. Variegated leaf blades have a creamy white margin, most pronounced in the spring.
Feather Reed Grass, Karl Foerster
Height - 48-60"
Width - 2'
Bloom Time - Summer
Seedhead Color - Tan/wheat
Early to set seedheads, usually by the 4th of July. Mostly upright habit with a clump of grass at the base. Cool season grass.
Feather Reed Grass, Overdam
Height - 4'
Width - 1-2'
Bloom Time - Summer
Seedhead Color - Tan
Variegated striped blades. One of the few grasses that performs well in partial shade. Cool season grass.
Little Bluestem, Blue Heaven®
Height - 3.5-4.5'
Width - 2.5-3.5'
Bloom Time - Late summer-Fall
Seedhead Color - Multi-colored in fall
Bright steel blue foliage with purple highlights turn a colorful mix of purple, red, pink and orange in the fall. This selection is taller, more upright and has a non-flopping habit. Seedheads are found all along the blade. Warm season grass.
Little Bluestem, Smoke Signal
Height - 3-4'
Width - 1.5-2'
Bloom Time - Early fall
Seedhead Color - Tan
Scarlet red in the summer and turns deep red/purple in fall. Stays strictly upright in the fall without flopping. Seedheads are found all along the blade. Warm season grass.
Little Bluestem, Standing Ovation
Height - 2-4'
Width - 1.5-2'
Bloom Time - Early fall
Seedhead Color - Purple to tan
Tolerates a wide range of soil conditions, even heavy clay. Leaf blades are wider and a nice blue color. Has an upright and rigid habit. Warm season grass.
Little Bluestem, Twilight Zone
Height - 4-4.5'
Width - 2'
Bloom Time - Fall
Seedhead Color - Purple
Silvery Mauve-purple foliage all summer turns deeper purple in the fall. Forms an upright columnar clump. Warm season grass.
Miscanthus, Flame Grass
Height - 4-5'
Width - 3'
Bloom Time - Late summer-Fall
Seedhead Color - Silky white panicles
Red and orange fall color. This grass mimics the flowing white seed heads in late summer you see in the road ditches in Iowa, but will not run and spread like them. Stays in a clump. Warm season grass.
Miscanthus, Red-Silver
Height - 5-7'
Width - 4-6'
Bloom Time - Late summer-fall
Seedhead Color - Pinkish-red
Large flowers make a show, turning from pink and red to silver. Plant stands strong through fall and winter. Clump is quick to spread, but stays in a clump. Warm season grass.
Moor Grass, Autumn
Height - 12-15"
Width - 15-18"
Bloom Time - Late summer
Seedhead Color - White
Excellent front of the border in mass plantings. Semi evergreen foliage will just need a light clean up in the spring. Cool season grass.
Praire Dropseed
Height - 2-3'
Width - 3'
Bloom Time - Fall
Seedhead Color - Tan
Iowa Native. Arching seedheads are delicate and held above the clump of foliage. Plant this one in the front of middle of the border because it is very see-through. Adds great texture. Easy to grow in most soil types.
Switchgrass, Northwind
Height - 5-6'
Width - 3'
Bloom Time - Late summer-Fall
Seedhead Color -Green airy seedheads
Very vertical, vase shaped habit. Sturdy plants stand tall through the fall and winter. Fall color is golden yellow. Warm season grass.
Pro Tip – Ornamental grasses are either warm or cool season. Cool Season grasses will emerge earlier in the season. Warm season grasses require not just warm air, but also warm soil to start growing. Unless noted, ornamental grasses perform best in full sun, which is at least 6 hours of sun per day.
Ornamental grasses should be left standing through the winter months for multiple reasons. It provides food and coverage for birds and insects in the fall and winter months. It also adds winter interest to the landscape. By leaving the foliage covering the crown, you are also protecting the crown of the plant in case we have extremely cold temperatures without much snow cover.
In the spring, you need to cut all grasses back to about 3″ so the new growth can push through and start growing.