Equally Excellent: More Cools for Spring Sales

Festuca ‘Elijah Blue’ and Calamagrostis ‘Karl Foerster’ get a lot of attention. But when it comes to cool-season grasses, it pays to look beyond the superstars. We suggest you try these equally excellent grasses that give spring sales and early season plantings a boost that’s a little different.

Striped Tuber Oat Grass

Bright, beautiful, and lush. This white and dark-green variegation on slow-spreading grass pops in shady conditions. Arrhenatherum elatius subsp. bulbosum ‘Variegatum’ is best suited for cooler climates; it will melt in the heat of our Southeastern climate. The current crop must ship by April 1, 2021 to ensure it’s fresh and bright when it arrives.

Blue Lyme Grass

Bright blue, glaucous foliage and a creeping habit make this European selection an excellent groundcover for dry, sunny sites. In spring, straw-colored seed heads emerge above the foliage. Put it where spreading is desirable or use in containers for a fresh look.

Variegated Selections of Feather Reed Grass (Calamagrostis x acutiflora)

‘Avalanche’ – with green on the outer margins and white down the middle of the blade, ‘Avalanche’ shows its stuff in the spring. The clump of basal foliage tucks neatly into color beds and mixed perennial borders. Its silver plumes shoot up above the foliage in spring and persist well into the season. Overall, a shorter, more compact plant than ‘Karl Foerster’.

‘Overdam’ – variegation on this selection is the opposite of ‘Avalanche’. ‘Overdam’ has cream white stripes along the margin surrounding a green center. It’s slightly shorter and produces similarly showy seed heads.

‘Eldorado’ – conjuring the myth of El Dorado, the lost city of gold, this selection sports gold and green variegation. Its stems maintain a honey hue and enhance the ornamental look. It tends to be a bit taller than the other two variegated selections and slightly shorter than ‘Karl Foerster’.