Harrowsmith – June 2019

Harrowsmith Summer 2019 | 19

GARDENING: ORNAMENTAL GRASSES

Here are some excellent varieties to look for at your garden retailer.

FESCUE
Look for blue fescue (Festuca
ovina) for a reliable mounding
plant that will look great lining the
border of your perennial garden
or massed together in a rockery
or on a slope. They really are blue.
Mature height 25 cm (10 inches).

BLUE OAT GRASS
(Helictotrichon
sempervirens)
Blooms in May/June. Greyish
blue flower head with interesting
“oats” developing as it matures.
Grows to 70 cm (28 inches).

ELIJAH BLUE

(Festuca glauca)

Silvery blue. Matures to only 15 cm

(six inches).

JAPANESE BLOOD

GRASS (Imperata

cylindrica)

Adds interest to most any garden.

Green foliage fading to red.

Attractive all season long. Matures

at 45 cm (18 inches).

SEDGE (Carex morrowii

‘Ice Dance’)

Green-and-creamy flowers in late

spring or early summer. Winter

hardy to Zone 7 (Niagara). Grows

to 30 cm (12 inches).

PORCUPINE GRASS

(Miscanthus sinensis

‘Gold Bar’)

Interesting spotted foliage

all season. Gold banding on

green blades. Matures to 60 cm

(24 inches).

SHORT

MEDIUM GROWING