The simplicity of Japanese gardens is trendy because this variant of white and green garden design slows down the fast-paced everyday life. So why not simply transfer this philosophy to the balcony box? This works best with small grasses and white pebbles in the flower box. Discover beautiful ornamental grasses for the balcony here.
Which grasses can I plant in balcony boxes?
Fox red sedge, tufted sedge 'Frosted Curls', Magellan bluegrass, blue fescue 'Elijah Blue' and Japanese gold ribbon grass 'Aureola' are suitable for sunny balcony boxes. Shade-loving grasses include mushroom head sedge 'The Beatles', shade sedge and snow marbel.
Top 5 of the ideal grasses for the sunny flower box
Grasses are much more than gap fillers or extras for cocky perennials. The following 5 premium species for sunny locations provide convincing evidence that grasses have the potential to be the main protagonist:
- Fox-red sedge (Carex buchananii) with red-brown spiked flowers in summer
- Crested sedge 'Frosted Curls' (Carex comans) with delicately twisted, silvery-green stalks
- Magellan blue grass (Elymus magellanicus), the steel blue ornamental grass for the sunny flower box
- Blue fescue 'Elijah Blue' (Festuca Cinerea), a long-lived grass beauty with ice blue stalks
- Japan gold ribbon grass 'Aureola' (Hakonechloa macra), the gold-colored striped ornamental grass with exciting autumn colors
Annual and hardy ornamental grasses are the perfect candidates to replace wilted summer flowers in late summer. Instead of spending a long time dealing with the withered flowers, pot up the flowers and replace them with autumn-attractive grasses, such as mountain sedge (Carex montana) with sulphur-yellow brush spikes.
Top 3 shade parkers among ornamental grasses
If there is a lack of light on the north-facing balcony, the time has come for shade-tolerant grasses. The following species and varieties transform the flower box in a low-light location into a green work of art:
- Mushroomhead sedge 'The Beatles' (Carex Digitata): the variety name says it all here
- Shadow sedge (Carex umbrosa), the easy-care problem solver for shady and dry locations
- Snow marbel (Luzula nivea) impresses with white fluffy flowers over filigree, evergreen stalks
Color contrasts with gravel and bark mulch – this is how it works
On the shady balcony, flowers and perennials are usually unsuitable as color contrasts. Creative hobby gardeners are not discouraged by this, but simply use white pebbles, red or blue pine bark as mulch under the grass in the balcony box.
Tip
Grasses form a harmonious community with flowers in the flower box. If you don't want to limit yourself to a basic green accord, combine ornamental grasses with blue lobelias, bold pansies and elegant hanging petunias. Bulb flowers, such as crocuses, marshmallows or snowdrops, ensure a blooming start to the year.