CALAMAGROSTIS Full sun to part shade / Deer resistant
Feather reed grass is admired and grown for its upright posture that provides a stunning vertical accent. The feathery plumes emerge in early summer, a soft purple turning beige, and remain attractive well into winter. They are easily grown in fertile, moist soils, but are adaptable to heavy clay soils. All are beautiful and dependable, creating high drama when planted in groups, and equally lovely as specimens. 'Avalanche' and 'Overdam' are two variegated-leaf beauties that seem to appreciate some afternoon shade in our hot and humid summer climate. C. brachytricha is my personal favorite, growing well in sun or shade, where it provides a splendid contrast to hosta, astilbe, and ferns.
Calamagrostis acutiflora 'Karl Foerster'  $10.95 GL    Zones 4 - 9
'Karl Foerster' has good looks throughout four seasons. In spring and summer, you get lush clumps of upright blades, richly green. In summer, wheat-like inflorescence rocket skyward and are attractive throughout autumn and winter, as the leaf blades turn to gold. 2001 Perennial Plant Association Plant of the Year and a Plants of Merit selection (plantsofmerit.org) from the Missouri Botanical Garden. Height 3 - 4 feet.
Calamagrostis acutiflora 'Overdam' $14.95  2-GL   Zones 4 - 7
This lovely reed grass positively glows in the spring with a brightness that is hard to look away from. The compact, erect leaf blades are painted a creamy white, with a narrow stripe of green down the center of each blade. In June, erect spikes of feathery plumes appear, that are lovely throughout the growing season. Height 3 - 4 feet.
Calamagrostis brachytricha $12.95  1.5 GL    Zones 4 - 9
This versatile reed grass will grow in sun or shade, sailing through hot, steamy summer with erect, narrow clumps of fresh green blades providing a much needed architecture to garden beds. The graceful, feathery plumes appear in late summer, bronzing as they age, and make lovely, unique cut flower material fresh or dried. Height 3 - 4 feet.

MISCANTHUS (Maiden Grass) Full sun / Deer resistant
The Maiden Grasses are the most popular of ornamental grasses, and it's easy to understand why. Just picture a voluptuous, weeping fountain of fine textured blades that in autumn is crowned in a top hat of silvery panicles. I can't think of a more beautiful sight than a mature clump in full plumage, the leaf blades in shades of gold, rust and beige, all backlit by a waning autumn sun.
Miscanthus sinensis 'Cosmopolitan'  $11.95 GL  Zones 5 - 9
A spectacle to behold! 'Cosmopolitan' is a tall fountain of arching, wide green blades brazenly painted with creamy white borders. The fluffy, blowsy, flower panicles emerge a coppery red color in early autumn, maturing to silver tones. Quite an eyeful and perfect for a sophisticated modern garden or tropicalismo design. Height 6 - 7 feet.
NEW!   Miscanthus sinensis ‘Dixieland’  $12.95 GL
Dwarf ornamental grasses seem to be the rage right now. With their compact habit they fit beautifully into today’s smaller gardens bringing essential texture and sophistication. ‘Dixieland’ promises just that with a compact habit to 4 – 5 feet, and shining green and white striped leaf blades. Essentially it is a more compact cultivar of M. sinensis ‘Variegatus’ (which normally grows 6 – 8 feet), with a more rigid and upright habit. Zones 5 – 9.
NEW!   Miscanthus sinensis ‘Gold Bar’  $12.95  2-qt
Psychedelic variegation!  The blades of this new maiden grass are highly variegated with horizontal golden bars, the effect being mind blowing. We grew ‘Gold Bar’ in a container in our tropical display area, where it brought an eye popping element of architecture and color. Slow growing, an eventual height to five feet in eight years.  Zones 5 - 8
Miscanthus sinensis 'Morning Light'  $10.95 GL  Zones 5 - 9
This is our favorite Miscanthus. Totally stunning, the tall clumps appear like a ghostly white apparition viewed from a distance. On closer examination, the very narrow blades are nearly white, with a fine line of green running down the center. Outstanding! Height 5 - 6 feet.
Miscanthus sinensis ‘Purpurascens’ (Flame Grass) $10.95 GL
Zones 4 - 9
Flame Grass ignites in fall with electric tones of orange, a stunning contrast to the fluffy white plumes.  Height 3 - 4 feet.
Miscanthus sinensis 'Strictus'  $10.95 GL  Zones 5 - 9
This exotic looking grass has the rarest type of variegation, horizontal 'banding' of gold up and down the long, upright, green leaf blades. A beauty with a tropical-like splendor, we surround our clumps with elephant ears, coleus and lantana. Height 6 - 7 feet.

PANICUM (Switch Grass)    Full sun / Deer resistant
These are tough prairie natives--- warm season grasses--- that are widely adaptable. They have an elegant, upright habit, many with soothing glaucous tones. Switch grasses provide important cover for birds and make a spectacular, naturalized groundcover when planted in groups. Likewise, they are sophisticated background plants in contemporary or traditional flower and perennial beds. Easily grown in many soil types and drought tolerant once established. The plumes are lovely and unusual in cut flower arrangements, fresh or dried.
NEW!   Panicum virgatum ‘Huron Solstice’   $12.95 GL   Zones 4 – 9
A stunning new look in switch grass!   With strictly upright blue-green leaf blades, ‘Huron Solstice’ morphs into shades of wine- purple beginning in early summer.  In fall the clumps are astounding, dressed in deep purple foliage that offer perfect contrast when companioned with fall flowering perennials. Height 4 feet.
NEW! Panicum virgatum ‘Prairie Fire’ (Red Switch Grass)  $12.95 GL  Zones 4 – 9
This new cultivar of Red Switch Grass is noted for its ability to ‘color up’ in early summer, unlike previous hybrids that tend to color in late summer and fall.  ‘Prairie Fire’ starts its metamorphasis in early summer, with sturdy, upright stems and leaf blades of blue-green that morph into deep wine red. Delicate rosy panicles grace the clumps in late summer and autumn. Height 4 - 5 feet.
Panicum virgatum 'Shenandoah' $10.95 GL   Zones 4 – 9
A compact selection---our shortest Switch Grass---with stunning red-hued leaf blades that glow in the sun like no other Panicum. Resembles a Japanese Blood Grass on steroids! Height 3 feet.

PENNISETUM (Fountain Grass)    Full sun to light shade / Deer resistant
I have been growing fountain grass as long as I have been gardening, its image pops up in my mind whenever I need an irresistible texture contrast in my beds. This is a grass with four season interest. In spring and early summer I love the fine textured compact clumps, and in late summer and fall I use the fountain of flowers (plumes) in fresh and dried arrangements.
Pennisetum alopecuroides 'Little Bunny'  $5.95 qt    Zones 5 - 9
The most dwarf fountain grass. Petite, tight mounds of needle-thin green blades, and a flurry of silvery white, mini plumes. Height 10 inches.
Pennisetum orientale ‘Karley Rose’   $9.95 GL   Zones 5 – 9
Gorgeous, smoky-rose plumes mid to late summer. Height 3 feet.