Ornamental Grasses – Can We Persuade You? by Nicki Jackson

Grasses are viewed by many designers as the building blocks between other plants or planting schemes and offer a striking opportunity for repetition throughout the garden. Most ornamental grasses have hollow stems which allows them to flex easier; hence their signature ‘swaying in the breeze’ that most designers love. Often the focus with grasses for designers are the leaves, not necessarily the flowers, so if you’re choosing some for yourself it’s important to find a colour or detail in the leaves that works with your colour scheme.

We love ornamental grasses at Blue Daisy, but we appreciate that not everyone is a fan. Grasses have had a bad rap in the past as many perceived them akin to bamboo; spreading and growing aggressively and becoming very large. Others consider them high maintenance and for some even their swaying and movement are thought to be messy and untidy. It’s true grasses do blow around in the wind, but we see this as a major advantage. So often we see a static garden where there is very little movement and oftentimes such gardens lack interest. Add a few grasses that suit the soil and position, and they will instantly bring drama and movement, not to mention texture, to the space.

It is also true that they need maintaining but for the most part, in terms of deciduous grasses, that maintenance consists of one cut back a year in February to make way for the new growth. Each plant may take 5 minutes or so, so the trick here is to not have too many that it takes too much time, but enough for the effect we’re looking for. It’s important to note too that when the grasses are cut back it allows other plants to become the stars of the show. By summer and autumn though they will be contributing significantly to the scheme again and will continue to hold court throughout the winter.

Are they aggressive spreaders and growers? Well, like many species, there are some grasses you would do well to avoid, but there are many that work well in a garden setting. All plants generally get bigger as they age so we do suggest using varieties that are slower to bulk up naturally and we recommend digging up and dividing ornamental grasses every few years (depending on variety) as this will both increase performance and keep the size in check.  For those grasses that spread by seed, it might well be worth avoiding them too.

3 grasses that we use often are:

Calamagrostis x acutiflora ‘Karl Forester’A very well-behaved grass, it’s great for a small garden and perhaps for ‘beginner’ grass owners too! This variety is sterile which means it doesn’t set seed and does not tend to affect those who suffer with allergies. It stands around 1.5m in height and around 60cm in width and looks great planted with perennials, preferably in full sun. It can also be used successfully as an informal hedge. This is one of the earliest grasses to show after being cut back. For a smaller variety you could try C. Overdam which gets to 1.2-1.5m in height, or C. brachytricha, a little smaller again.

Molinia arundinacea ‘Transparent’A lovely deciduous grass that is native to the UK, this variety has all the benefit of height: 1.5-1.8m, but without the weight, as the flower spikes are transparent and turn a lovely butter yellow colour in autumn. A smaller variety to consider is M. ‘Poul Peterson’ which gets to around 80cms. Both look great planted with perennials or in a mixed border.

Hakonechloa macra
A deciduous grass native to Japan that really does prefer shade but is happy in dappled shade too (though not morning sun as it can burn). Typically, it grows to 35cm in height and a little wider, so this grass works in planters and in the ground. We have used this grass successfully in shady minimalist borders as well as in Japanese themed gardens, it’s best planted en masse for effect. H. macra Alboaurea has a more yellowy green tone to the leaves, but both look great underplanting a tree.

There are many more wonderful grasses that we don’t have space for here but we urge you to give grasses a try – let us know if you do, we’d love to hear!

© Nicki Jackson, Blue Daisy Gardens 2025