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Grass Hedges
Miscanthus purpurascens (late fall) |
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The word hedge evokes images of
a row of dense, tall, neatly trimmed shrubs dividing
one neighbor's yard from another. Hedges are very
common in the eastern U.S. landscapes. they are
somewhat less common in western landscapes even
though the need for hedge-like plantings is fairly
universal in gardens and landscapes, even western
landscapes. If there's a spot in your landscape that
seems right for a hedge, you might want to consider
an alternative "western" hedge, plant ornamental
grasses.
At first you might think that grasses wouldn't make
a suitable hedge plant, after all they die back to
the ground each winter. But many ornamental grasses
are very well suited to hedge like functions in the
western landscape. |
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Miscanthus |
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Little Blue Stem
Little Blue Stem (fall/winter color)
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Their season growth pattern does not really prevent
them from being effective hedges. While it's true
that grasses need to be cut back each spring, most
ornamental grasses quickly grow back in the early
summer to an effective height, by late summer have
regained their full stature, and then retain that
full size presence in the landscape through fall and
winter. So grass hedges end up being effective as
hedges for 10 to 11 month of the year.
Ornamental Grass Hedge in Winter
Home owners that I know that have used grasses in
hedge-like planting do not seem to mind the four to
six week period when their grass hedge is shorter.
That downside seems to be more than offset by the
many upsides of using ornamental grass as hedges in
Wyobraska.
Feather Reed Grass (karl foerster)
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Hedge
Grasses in Wyobraska Landscapes |
| Grass |
Hight/Width |
Season |
Sun |
Note |
Water |
| Feather Reed
Grass |
3-4' x 2' |
Cool |
Sun/Shade |
1 |
Medium |
| Miscanthus |
4-6' x 3-5'
Varies by cultivar |
Warm |
Sun |
2 |
Wet |
| Switch Grass |
4-7' x 3-5' |
Warm |
Sun |
3 |
Medium |
| Little
Bluestem |
2-3' x 1-2' |
Warm |
Sun |
4 |
Low |
| Big Bluestem |
4-6' x 2-3' |
Warm |
Sun |
5 |
Med/Low |
| Hardy Pampas |
7-10' x 4-6' |
Warm |
Sun |
6 |
Med/Wet |
Notes
- Summer interest, fits in most
landscapes
- Very vigorous grass when
watered, many excellent cultivars
- Native grass, several good
culitvars
- Good for non-irrigated
applications, excellent fall and winter color
- Good non-traditional hedge
grass for naturalized settings mesmerizing in
the wind
- Stunning, tall ornamental
grass that will make an unique hedge with height
is needed.
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Superb plant adaptability.
Most of the commonly used ornamental grasses are
very well adapted to Wyobraska soils, even to
those notoriously poor landscape soils in the
neighborhoods of west Gering and north
Scottsbluff. With just the standard soil
amendment of 2 inches of compost before planting
any of the hardy ornamental grasses will grow
for years with few, if any, soil related
problems.
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Distinctive ornamental
qualities. Grass is the dominant plant
in the native Wyobraska landscape, but most of
that native landscape is now farmed or grazed to
a degree that the unique qualities of a grass
dominated landscape have been lost. When grasses
are left to grow to their full size and allowed
to remain at that size through a full annual
growth cycle, homeowners often begin to
experience the ornamental qualities of grasses
for the first time, and they like it.
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Surprisingly effective
hedge-like screening. When I first
experimented with a mostly grass hedge I
expected to to be more ornamental than
functional. I was surprised to find that grasses
make a very effective screening plant. Switch
Grass and Miscanthus are particularly dense
grasses that also reach 4-6 feet in height, a
standard height for most hedges. But Feather
Reed Grass and Little Blue Stem can also provide
effective hedge-like separation when a shorter
overall height is desired.
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Easy maintenance.
Most grass hedges require very little
maintenance. All should be cut back in the
spring. Cool season grass hedges should be cut
back between march 15th-30th, warm season hedge
plants should be cut back April 15th-30th. Some
grasses require very little irrigation. Little
Bluestem, for example, will perform better with
little, if any, irrigation. It tends to flop
when watered regularly, but remains a nice erect
plant when receiving only natural precipitation.
Miscanthus, on the other hand, does best when
watered about the same as a shrub-type hedge,
weekly. Ornamental grasses will all benefit from
a light annual application of fertilizer applied
around the middle of June.
Switch Grass (fall color shown in insert) |