What makes ornamental grasses so popular for landscape plants?
Many are fairly drought tolerant, or tolerant of a wide range of conditions. Sand cord grass, for instance, will thrive in wet spots near both fresh or salt water – but if a drought comes – it does just as well without significant added water. Also, it is a different look in the landscape – a bit more informal – maybe a little wild. Are there varieties that are better suited for our area? The ones that are most commonly seen in the nurseries are Purple fountain grass and Liriope or lilyturf. Liriope has been used for years as a border grass. Red fountain grass grows 3 – 4 ft. tall and 2-3 feet wide with lovely maroon leaves and tall arching seed heads. Others that I like that may be a bit harder to find are the native grasses: Dwarf Fakahatchee grass is evergreen and grows 3feet high by about 4 feet wide and has interesting seed heads- full sun to part shade and virtually free of pests. Pink Muhly grass grows in a clump about 2 – 3 feet tall. In the fall the flowers are a purplish pink
