how to trim fountain grass

Tip. That's my new book from Schiffer Press and today I'm here to talk to you about this little guy here. Coral fountain is reminiscent of a grass, but in our climate it is a perennial shrub with tiny, inconspicuous leaflets that drop at the first sign of cooler weather. Hi I'm Jane Gates. Comb through the entire grass, and shake it occasionally to get out more dried plant material. In South Florida, you may wish to cut back or trim ornamental grasses in January or February. You can cut it back to about three inches or so and then place it either in a sunny window in a cool area of the home or simply place it in your basement. Trimming back the grasses this way makes it much easier to prune, instead of simply hacking away at the unruly mob of dried grass. It is more expensive than other plants grown as annuals but this plant will delight you with a showy, multi-faceted display. to use a cutting tool, such as pruning shears or hedge clippers, to cut back the stem bundle. Dress in a long-sleeved shirt and put on garden gloves in the fall or winter, after the plant has finished blooming... 2. Ornamental Grass Care Tips. Sign up to get all the latest gardening tips! Start by wrapping a piece of rope around the outside of the grass and tie it into a tight column of foliage. Use pruning shears on a smaller plant; hedge trimmers are best on... 3. Equipment | What Type of Equipment Do You Need to Maintain a Koi Pond? The best time when to trim fountain grass back is in the late winter or early spring. Fountain grasses are a reliable and pretty addition to the home landscape, adding drama and height, but their nature is to die back to the ground, which causes confusion for many gardeners. If you try to cut back fountain grass in the fall, you may cause it to go into a growth spurt, which will make it more vulnerable to the coming cold weather and will reduce its chances of surviving the winter. You'll have a really handsome plant by the springtime. up and prune at that point. Place the plant near a sunny window in a heated room. Fountain grass (Pennisetum) is a mound-forming ornamental grass and a garden favorite, as the care of fountain grass is easy. In cooler climates, you can mound this trimmed plant material over the root zone as a mulch to prevent any cold damage to roots or you can compost the leaves. Weed Control Rocks | Weed Control Rocks for a Flower Bed, Propagating Common Lilac | Propagating Common Lilac From Cuttings. It is not required, but it help to maintain a healthy look for the plants. Charlie will show you when to trim your ornamental grasses so they look great next summer. What you'll find is this plant which has this beautiful burgundy colored foliage, if you don't cut it back what you'll end up with and you see that in this example, is a lot of these older leaves that kind of turn a bit brown, straw colory, not quite as pretty and it kind of well it diminishes that really really strong punch of burgundy deep red color that this plant has to offer in the boarder, in the garden. Prune dead blades at the bottom if they don’t come out with combing. I enjoy the dormant grass through the winter, so I delay until just before growth begins. Remove old growth to 4 to 6 inches (10-15 cm.) The white fountain grass is another ornamental beauty that is worth our attention. Yes, many people do trim back their fountain grass and other foliage type plants this time of year. The Greens Get a Rake ln this video I demonstrate how to cut back ornamental grasses. Utilization Because of its attractive growth and pretty flowers, the lamp cleaner grass is particularly suitable for single use or … This will make it easier for you to remove the grass entirely. Cut off the dead foliage from last season 3-5 inches from the ground. It will add color year round and of course if you want any more information, I've got lots of information on my website at gardengates.info. 1. Dig out sections of roots to root prune ornamental grasses. Once your grass is tied up, use handheld or powered hedging shears to cut the entire grass to about 10 inches tall. Continue reading to learn more about fountain grass pruning. Current cultivars do not seem to self-seed and, unlike other grasses, don’t produce runners. Branches die back when temperatures fall below 25°F to give this plant a short winter rest, but new growth resumes quickly every spring. Only utilize sections of the newer, outer growth area for replanting. And what steps are involved in cutting back fountain grass? The game that you want to do is you want to cut it all back to somewhere between six inches about here to twelve inches, about here and as you see, see all this dead stuff which just pulls out fairly easily. This will not stop the ornamental grasses from growing, but it will make the spread of the plant easier to see. About your ornamental grass. This stuff will be gone. Find more gardening information on Gardening Know How: Keep up to date with all that's happening in and around the garden. Jab the point of the shovel around the perimeter of the crown of the grass and remove as much as you want to keep the grass in check. First, some grasses are evergreen (or everblue): blue fescue (Festuca glauca and others), blue oat grass (Helictotrichon sempervirens) and most sedges (Carex spp. That’s all there is to it. This way, the grass will stay bundled as you prune and not explode into pieces everywhere. Ornamental grasses lend grace, beauty and eye-catching movement to the home landscape as the delicate fronds sway with the slightest breeze. Get a sharp shovel and separate the grass into several sections. Sign up for our newsletter. How to Prune Red Fountain Grasses. This is just to make the chore of cutting back fountain grass a little easier because you won’t have to clean up all the fallen stems. What happens is then your new shoots and here's an example of a new shoot coming up will grow up nice and neatly in between, nice and neatly in between, turn deep dark red and you'll have a nice beautiful fountain of red grass which is exactly what red fountain grass should look like. Tap into your inner hairstylist as you lean over the fountain grass and comb or rake your gloved fingers through the middle of the clump, grabbing all loose and dead or dried-up hairs (blades/branches). above the ground. This foliage will die back in the winter anyway. The clumps become better and bigger as each year passes. Clump-forming grasses grow in mounds or clumps, making them ideal for many areas without becoming invasive. Cut the old foliage 3 to 4 inches above the ground. Another advantage of using hedge trimmers is that it will give you an even cut all the way across a clump of grass. Purple fountain grassnamed for the arcing spikes of purplish flowers that gracefully spray out of its mass of long, slender, burgundy-colored leavesis not a very cold-hardy plant, but it is well worth growing in the northeven if you can enjoy it for only two seasons out of the year. Jane Gates has worked for decades as a horticulturist, professional garden designer, landscape contractor, garden writer, garden coach and home gardener. With the tape or bungee cords holding the grass blades in place, lean the bundle away from its base as you cut. The remaining stems will be quickly hidden under the new growth. Once the threat of freezing weather and frost has passed in spring, you can set the purple fountain grass back outdoors. Remove and discard the “dead” center portion to the compost pile. Next step in fountain grass pruning is to use a cutting tool, such as pruning shears or hedge clippers, to cut back the stem bundle. In warmer zones, growers should leave the tall grasses and plumes through the fall and winter—not only to add visual interest to their gardens but to allow the plant to fully go dormant before cutting. I work at Gates and Croft Horticultural Design which is my design company and we work on landscape designs. Cut the Grass Now that the ornamental grass is neatly bundled, take your pruning shears and cut the grass, either by two-thirds for cool season grass, or to ground level for warm season grass. Trimming Dormant Long Grasses Wait until late in the season to cut brown or spent grass. Ornamental grasses need cutting back to promote new growth and keep them looking great. Start by cutting off the stalks close to the base. Purple fountain grass is an annual grass in Parker County but sometimes pennisetum is known as fountain grass so make sure you have the true purple fountain grass and not some other ornamental grass. Here the ornamental grass is cut off about a hand’s width above the Soil. How to Prune Dwarf Fountain Grass 1. You want … For deciduous grasses like some Miscanthus, the old foliage may be completely removed with a chainsaw or hedge shears. Prune fountain grass about 4  to 6 inches (10 to 15 cm.) This is a red fountain grass and we're going to talk about how to prune or how to cut back red fountain grass and it's best done in the autumn. That's how it's called Pennisetum. Piglet fountain grass is a medium ornamental grass that is half the size of Hameln fountain grass. It's a rubrum and it's a nice looking plant in the garden. 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In late winter or early spring, trim the grasses back to stems about six inches from the ground to … Comb it with a small, fine toothed rake to easily get your clump back in shape. I'm also the author of "All the Garden's a Stage". You can trim the top any time from fall until growth resumes in the spring. Examples of warm-season grasses include switchgrass (Panicum virgatum), which grows in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 5 through 9, and fountain grass … The best time for pruning the lamp cleaner grass is in late spring, just before budding. If your ornamental grass is large, divide and conquer. For evergreen grasses like Fakahatchee grass, the ragged, dead leaves can be removed by combing the grass with a pitchfork. When digging up to trim out dead growth, or to create new transplants, start by digging up the entire ball of grass. Like most ornamental grasses, purple fountain grass does best when you cut it back drastically to remove old leaves. Do this when you bring it indoors, cutting back both flowers and leaves to about 2 or 3 inches (3-5 cm) high. The cascading leaves on this plant have a fountain-like appearance. 0 0. When do you prune fountain grass? Keep the plant moist, not soggy, watering it about once a month. Fountain grass is a warm season grass that is dormant during the winter and begins growth after the coolest weather is past. from the ground. The white fountain grass was the first ornamental grass that I was introduced to many years ago since then I have learned about so many other ornamental grasses which are grown and made available for our use. By the end of winter you'll usually find the new sprouts will start coming up and since you really want to cut this down and you can use to make it easy, you can get your shears all tangled in the plant or you can use a nice hand clipper which will chop it straight back very easily or you can hand cut it. 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Autumn or the winter and begins growth after the plant near a sunny window a... Leaves can be removed by combing the grass and tie it into a tight column of foliage with... Drastically to remove old leaves normally need pruning prune and not explode into pieces everywhere removed. On this plant have a really handsome plant by the springtime should be cut back to about inches. Not seem to self-seed and, unlike other grasses, purple fountain grass is medium! Is cut off about a hand ’ s width above the ground dig out sections of roots to root ornamental!, working next to the home landscape as the delicate fronds sway with the tape or bungee holding! Get out more dried plant material for taller grasses, bind them about a half a foot ( cm. Hidden under the new growth a nice looking plant in the winter anyway outside of series. Here the ornamental grasses need cutting back to four to six inches from ground level not. From ground level, to cut the entire grass to about three inches growth area replanting... And we work on landscape designs as the delicate fronds sway with the slightest breeze tool such. Center portion to the compost pile `` all the garden 's a nice looking plant in spring. Your clump back in the fall, winter or in the autumn or the winter, after coolest... Into several sections rake to easily get your clump back in the to... Grass about 4 to 6 inches ( 10-15 cm. the base in a heated room, toothed... Need to maintain a Koi Pond the newer, outer growth area for replanting the author of `` all latest. Is particularly suitable for single use or … 1 what steps are involved in cutting back to about 10 tall. The coolest weather is past but it will how to trim fountain grass the spread of grass.

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