At the Garden Stores I have received answers such as - "dig them up", leave them alone". I am completely confused and have not been able to find the info I am looking for in garden books - have bought four books which I have enjoyed but they were not helpful in regard to fountain grasses. Any info you can give me, or any suggestions as to where I might obtain this info would be very helpful. You can just leave them alone, but then the dead and old leaves remain.
Grass plants with the old leaves are healthy, but don't look as good as they could. I prefer to remove the old growth in the late winter before new growth develops. You can cut the top now, but the grass will be less stressed if you wait until it is dormant. Once they are well rooted you should be able to decrease or quit watering.
Many ornamental grasses are selections of native prairie or woodland plants. In their natural habitat, the only nutrients they receive comes from their own decomposing foliage and that of the plants around them. You can mimic those conditions by mulching around the base of your grasses in fall with shredded leaves.
No other fertilizer is needed or desired by grasses; in fact, feeding them often causes them to stretch and flop over. It depends on the type of grass. Search this site:. We're listening! Contact Us. Get Local. Log In. Find plants you love and create idea boards for all your projects. To create an idea board, sign in or create an account. Already Started?
How to Care for Ornamental Grasses. Tags: Fall, Pruning, Through the Seasons. Ask a Question or Give Feedback about this article. Know Your Zones.
All Rights Reserved. About Proven Winners Privacy Policy. Image: RHS. Quick facts. Suitable for: Deciduous grasses are cut back. Evergreen grasses require tidying up Timing: Early to mid-spring Difficulty: Easy.
Jump to Suitable for When to cut back How to cut back Step-by-step pruning of deciduous grasses. Suitable for Deciduous grasses can be cut back hard Evergreen grasses usually only need the dead material removing and do not always respond well to hard pruning.
When to cut back Early spring to mid-spring depending on the species. How to cut back Deciduous grasses, which turn a golden, straw brown rather than necessarily lose their leaves, need different treatment from those with are evergreen. Other deciduous grasses, such as Pennisetum orientale , do not produce new growth until later in the season.
The culms old stems will protect the crown, so delay clipping these types until late April Pruning late mid-March to April is also appropriate for Miscanthus , which has structural stems that persist over the winter. These should be pruned away individually with secateurs to ensure the new, green shoots are not cut off in the process Stipa tenuissima is classed as deciduous but in some gardens performs more as an evergreen.
If the build up of dead material is low, treat as for evergreens by simply combing out the loose foliage. Alternatively, and for plants with a lot of dead, cut back fully in spring Evergreen grasses Small evergreen grasses, such as Festuca glauca , can be trimmed in spring.
Remove any brown tips and cut back the dead leaves that usually collect around the base Larger evergreen species such as Cortaderia selloana pampas grass benefit from hard annual pruning in early spring, cutting back as far as possible without damaging new growth.
It is also recommended that you wear gloves and long sleeves as grasses can be sharp and cause itching. Use sharp pruners or hedge clippers. You may need to re-sharpen them as grasses dull cutting blades. Grab the plant and tie a string or tape around it and cut straight across the plant inches from the base. Using your hands or a tool, comb through the remaining plant to remove dead grass. If you wish to thin the plant, make small cuttings inside of the plant in several areas. The remaining grass stalks will "disappear" when the plant re-grows and will provide some support to the flowers and blades.
This is an arching type of grass so some flowers will fall around the periphery of the plant and you can trim these away but again leave inches of the blades. Your second question was about the blue fescue with reddish brown stalks and whether or not the fountain grass could be causing this to happen.
I could find no information in my research about fountain grass causing this problem. Browning of grass may be due to excessive watering or fertilization or the plant being root bound or excessive sunburn. It may also be the result of the fountain grass shading the blue fescue.
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