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Browse Plants

Narrowed By:Type: Grasses+ Zone: 9+ Light: Full Sun to Part Shade, Part Shade Only
Displaying 1 - 20 of 29 listings   1 | 2View AllNext > Sort By: Sort
Andropogon zizanioides Andropogon zizanioides
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Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

This beautiful ornamental grass has upright, glossy green foliage and interesting, animated leaf tips that resemble party favors. Evergreen to 25°F, these plants gain reddish purple hues in the fall and winter. This plant is extremely adaptable—it thrives in desert and damp conditions, it is used for erosion control, and it works well in containers or as a screen. It looks especially beautiful when backlit by the sun.

Calamagrostis × acutiflora 'Karl Foerster' Calamagrostis × acutiflora 'Karl Foerster'
(Karl Foerster's Feather Reed Grass)
(2 user reviews)
Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

Versatile, attractive and care-free ornamental grass with wheat-like appearance. Slender, upright, deep-green, lustrous foliage becomes effective by early spring and lasts all the way until winter. A cool season grass, 'Karl Foester' is upright and clump forming, with purplish-green, feathery plumes to 6'. It distinctively blooms in early summer rather than fall and must have winter chill to bloom. Long lived -- 25 years or more. -Santa Rosa Gardens

Calamagrostis 'Karl Foerster' Calamagrostis 'Karl Foerster'
(Karl Foerster feather reed grass)
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Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

This versatile ornamental grass has slender, upright, deep-green foliage. A cool season grass, it is upright and clump forming, with purplish-green, feathery plumes that can reach 6 feet in height. It blooms in early summer rather than fall and must have winter chill to bloom.



Information provided by Santa Rosa Gardens.

Carex buchananii Carex buchananii
(Leatherleaf sedge)
(2 user reviews)
Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

Two-foot-tall, stiff, orange-brown blades curve at the end like a shepherd’s staff. Burnished red-bronze foliage, which fades to flax at the tips, gives off a warm glow when backlit by the sun.

Carex divulsa Carex divulsa
(Berkeley sedge)
(1 user review)
Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

This sedge is one of the most adaptable of the ground-cover grasses. Its ability to look the same in sun or shade makes it a valuable asset in plantings that go in and out of full sun. Berkeley sedge is a good solution for areas under stress where lawn grasses often fail. The flowers are not particularly noteworthy.

Carex morrowii 'Ice Dance' Carex morrowii 'Ice Dance'
(Variegated sedge)
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Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

'Ice Dance' is a dense, spreading sedge grown for its foliage. This sedge looks good year round, even in winter.The early-spring flowers are insignificant, but the white-edged leaves complement most other plants. Grow as a groundcover in woodland areas or in a shade garden. This sedge is evergreen in warm climates. -Jane Hutson, Regional Picks: Midwest, Fine Gardening issue# 127

Carex siderosticha 'Variegata' Carex siderosticha 'Variegata'
(Broad-leaf sedge)
(1 user review)
Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

This sedge's pearly, straplike leaves resemble striped ribbon waiting to be wrapped around a package. It sports fuzzy green flowers with green stamens in late spring. Grow as an edging or groundcover.

Chasmanthium latifolium Chasmanthium latifolium
(Northern sea oats, Spangle grass, Wild oats)
(2 user reviews)
Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

Northern sea oats is a loosely tufted, clump-forming grass with lance-shaped, arching mid-green foliage that turns yellow in winter. Summer brings highly decorative oat-like panicles of flat, green flowerheads that shimmer and rustle in the wind, aging to bronze by late summer.

Cordyline hybrida var. JURed 'Festival™ Burgundy' Cordyline hybrida var. JURed 'Festival™ Burgundy'
(Festival™ Burgundy corydaline)
(1 user review)
Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

This basal branching cordyline combines the rugged easy-care attributes of its cordyline cousins with an unusual mix of shiny dark color, compact bushy form, short stems and cascading grass-like leaves.

Deschampsia cespitosa 'Northern Lights' Deschampsia cespitosa 'Northern Lights'
(Tufted hair grass, Tussock grass)
(2 user reviews)
Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

A tuft of thin grassy foliage with gray and gold variegation distinguishes this cultivar. Early summer brings 3-foot-tall, airy plumes of tiny flowers that look beautiful when backlit by the sun. As fall approaches, the foliage turns golden with pink-coral tips. This grass even grows well in shadier sites. Plant in a border, woodland garden, or shaded rock garden.

Fargesia nitida Fargesia nitida
(Fountain bamboo)
(1 user review)
Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

This striking clump-forming bamboo, with olive-purple stems, dark green leaves, and an upright habit, is suitable for screening. May be grown in a container if provided with adequate moisture.

Festuca mairei Festuca mairei
(Atlas fescue)
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Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

This sturdy groundcover is fast becoming one of the most dependable grasses for creating drought-tolerant meadows. Clumping evergreen foliage is a rich khaki green and grows in an arching clump. The flowers, while noticeable, are not showy. Atlas fescue is at its best in groups and grows in all but hot, humid, and low desert climates.

Hakonechloa macra 'Aureola’ Hakonechloa macra 'Aureola’
(Golden Japanese forest grass)
(2 user reviews)
Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

Brightly variegated golden foliage with green stripes near the leaf margins give this Japanese forest grass its distinctive look. Too much shade can cause the golden portion to fade to lime green. This slow-growing may not reach a mature size for three years, but it is definitely worth the wait. -Matt Griswold, Regional Picks: Northeast, Fine Gardening issue #127

Isolepis cernua Isolepis cernua
(Fiber-optic grass)
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Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

This eye-catching sedge has silvery flower heads on the ends of its stems, making it appear like a tuft of fiber optic threads. It needs moist or wet soil and grows to about a foot tall and wide. Use it at waterside or in a container.

Miscanthus sinensis ‘Gracillimus’ Miscanthus sinensis ‘Gracillimus’
(Eulalia grass, Maiden grass)
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Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

This elegantly shaped grass has narrow leaves with white mid-ribs and a vase-like form to 6 feet tall. It shows bronze autumn color and can stand throughout winter to provide architectural interest. Tassel-like inflorescences appear in fall and can be used as cut or dried flowers.

Miscanthus sinensis ‘Morning Light’ Miscanthus sinensis ‘Morning Light’
(Eulalia grass)
(1 user review)
Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

This beautiful grass has an "inner light" that emanates from the white midribs of its fine-textured leaf blades and the threads of white around their edges. A graceful shape usually between 5 and 6 feet tall, ‘Morning Light’, turns golden in November and fades to beige in winter.

no image available Molinia caerulea 'Variegata'
(Variegated purple moor grass)
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Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

This tufted, compact perennial has dense clumps of slender, foot-long green leaves marked with stripes of creamy yellow. In summer, slim, pale yellow flower stalks rise up 3 feet tall in an arching pattern. Each inflorescence holds well into the fall, turning a toasty tan.

Molinia caerulea ssp. arundinacea 'Sky Racer' Molinia caerulea ssp. arundinacea 'Sky Racer'
(Tall purple moor grass)
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Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

'Skyracer' grows to about 3 feet wide and 2 to 3 feet wide, and in late summer to early fall, sends up delicate panicles to a height of 6 or 7 feet. This finely-textured ornamental grass is great for areas where you need height but don't have space for a wider, heavier plant. It works well in a sunny border but make sure you site it so you can see it closeup. Expect outstanding yellow color in fall.

Muhlenbergia capillaris Muhlenbergia capillaris
(Muhly grass)
(1 user review)
Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

In autumn, this unique specimen creates a spectacular, billowy inflorescence of massed, vibrant pink, airy flowers on 4-foot stems. It is noted for its tolerance to poorly drained soil. It is possibly hardy to Zone 6 with protection.

Muhlenbergia lindheimeri Muhlenbergia lindheimeri
(Lindheimer's muhly)
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Hardiness Zones: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

This beautiful warm-season grass produces attractive, pale purplish-gray plumes in autumn and goes dormant in the cold season. It forms a neat, upright clump with fine blue-gray foliage.


Displaying 1 - 20 of 29 listings   1 | 2View AllNext > Sort By: Sort