When it comes to ornamental grasses, the incredible variety of shapes and colors is immediately noticeable. The spectrum ranges from small ornamental grass, which is often planted to fill gaps in beds, to large cattail plants, which attract the viewer's attention as solitary plants.
What should you know about ornamental grasses in the garden?
Ornamental grasses in the garden enrich with their variety of shapes and colors and require different locations and soil conditions. Examples include sun-loving riding grasses, shade-tolerant grove ledges or eye-catching pampas grasses. Optimal conditions create an attractive eye-catcher in the garden.
What you need to know about ornamental grasses
We initially distinguish between four plant families:
- True grasses or sweet grasses
- Sour or sedge grasses
- Bulrushes
- Cattail family
Another point of differentiation is their lifespan: a distinction is made between annual and perennial ornamental grasses.
The annual grasses grow from seeds in spring, become adult grasses over the course of the summer and produce seeds again in autumn the next generation. The perennial grasses are perennials that can be cultivated in perennial beds for several years with appropriate care measures.
The appearance of the grasses
As already mentioned, ornamental grasses are characterized by a wide variety. They are available in all possible shades of color, from green to brown and yellow to elegant silver or gray. Over the course of the year you can observe a change in color in most grasses. Some species, such as riding grasses or pipe grasses, impress with their magnificent autumn colors.
In addition to the color variations, the different heights of the species are also interesting. The most spectacular are the giant grasses, which can grow up to four meters high in favorable locations. Grass like this is an absolute eye-catcher in the garden. In addition to the large ornamental grasses, the small and very small specimens also beautify the perennial bed. Some small varieties grow tightly upright, while in others the narrow, long leaves hang in a gentle arch down to the ground.
The best location
The location is different for each ornamental grass. Riding grass, pipe grass and miscanthus, for example, prefer a sunny location in the garden, while the evergreen sedges and grove ledges thrive in the shade. The soil for the ornamental grasses should be loose, rich in nutrients and humus, and not waterlogged.
Examples of ornamental grasses
Grasses that are green all year round include the giant sedge, the blue-green rush or the grove ledges. Some grasses form fruit heads as they grow. These include, on the one hand, the feather grasses, which form small and inconspicuous fruit heads, and, on the other hand, the conspicuous fruit heads of cotton grass or silver ear grass. The flower panicles of miscanthus and pampas grass are best known.
