Ornamental grasses

In my role as a garden designer and lecturer I have found that ornamental grasses can divide the room, people tend to love or loathe them.  A shame when people dismiss them, often because of the brown, ‘hay-like’ qualities or fearing that grasses will seed everywhere.   Grasses are so incredibly useful for filling the late summer gap, taking a leading role in autumn and providing movement and texture to a garden.  Naturalistic planting schemes benefit hugely from grasses and many insects overwinter in the hollow stems, offering a valuable wildlife benefit.

When it comes to self-seeding, many grasses are in fact sterile, so that won’t be an issue.  It’s true that there are one or two self-seeding varieties that I would give a wide berth to, especially in a small garden but generally grasses add so much and yet require so little maintenance.  Deciduous grasses need an annual cut back, usually in late winter before the new growth emerges.  Evergreen grasses tend to only need a slight tidy up in spring.  So, if you are looking for a low maintenance plant, you really can’t beat grasses.   Some of my favourites include, Calamagrostis ‘Karl Foerster’ an upright grass that refuses to be blown over by the wind and the low-growing, evergreen Carex are prefect for dry shade.

The best place to go and enjoy grasses is Knoll Gardens and Nursery in Dorset, run by our leading authority on grasses Neil Lucas – www.knollgardens.co.uk

A great book available by Neil – Designing with Grasses by Timber Press.

Annie Guilfoyle