{"id":227,"date":"2010-10-19T04:21:45","date_gmt":"2010-10-19T12:21:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/garden\/?p=227"},"modified":"2015-11-24T07:32:58","modified_gmt":"2015-11-24T15:32:58","slug":"foxtail-grass","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/foxtail-grass\/","title":{"rendered":"Foxtail Grass"},"content":{"rendered":"

FOXTAIL GRASS
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\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The popularity of ornamental grasses rolls on unabated. \u00a0From miscanthus to fescue, they are everywhere–in places as diverse as strip mall parking lots and high-end residential landscapes.\u00a0 It is unfashionable to say so, but I can take or leave most of them.\u00a0 Some, like miscanthus or Chinese ribbon grass, are simply too big and unwieldy for my suburban garden.\u00a0 Others, like fescue, just do not grab hold of my imagination.\u00a0 \u00a0Two grasses that do inspire me, however, are Pennisetum alopecuroides and Pennisetum setaceum, otherwise known as foxtail grass and fountain grass.\u00a0 They clearly enchant a lot of other people too, as I have seen them a lot lately in the garden centers and big box stores.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Most of the pennisetum that I see in commercial establishments is Pennisetum setaceum ‘Rubrum’ or purple fountain grass.\u00a0 It grows to about 3 feet in height and is often displayed in the middle of large, mixed container arrangements, surrounded by mums or asters or pansies in complementary colors.\u00a0 Identification is easy.\u00a0 The spiky seedheads are pinkish-purple and sway atop arching stalks.\u00a0 The foliage is often bronze or purple as well.\u00a0 Native to Africa, the species should be treated as an annual in areas where winter temperatures fall below 20 degrees Fahrenheit.\u00a0 In USDA Zone 6, where I live, purple fountain grass can sometimes survive the average winter, especially if it is planted in the ground in a protected location.\u00a0
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Foxtail grass is a Chinese pennisetum that can be smaller–sprouting to 2 or 3 feet in height–and hardier than Pennisetum setaceum.\u00a0 The plants are cold tolerant enough to be grown as perennials in areas with cold winters, through USDA Zone 5.\u00a0 The “foxtails,”\u009d which many sources compare in appearance to bottle brushes, are showy in the fall, rising above evergreen or semi-evergreen foliage.\u00a0 Some alopecuroides varieties, like ‘Hamelin,’ have reddish foliage, while others, including “Moudry,’ sport green leaves.\u00a0
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The pennisetums, with their soft, seedhead “tails,”\u009d almost beg to be touched, and\u00a0\u00a0 children are often fascinated by them.\u00a0 Left untrimmed through the winter, they provide nice accents in the landscape, even after the seedheads turn brown.\u00a0 Both species are sun lovers and hate wet feet.\u00a0 When grown as an annual, Pennisetum setaceum does not really get started until late spring when the weather is consistently warm.\u00a0 The alopecuroides species is also a late starter.\u00a0 This does not really matter, as spring has plenty of horticultural attractions, whereas fall can generally use a few more.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Pennisetum is part of the Gramineae family, which is also home to Zea, more commonly known as corn.\u00a0 Phragmites, which populates swamps by the millions, is another family member.\u00a0 In Latin, the word “penna”\u009d means “feather”\u009d and “seta”\u009d means. “bristle.”\u009d\u00a0 The species name “alopecuroides”\u009d is from a classical Greek word that translates as “foxtail grass.”\u009d\u00a0 The genus was first described in 1805, but it is not clear when the pioneering wave of ornamental pennisetums landed on American shores.\u00a0 My 1947 edition of the Wayside Gardens Catalog, generally a good indicator of popular horticultural taste, has no listing for any pennisetum.\u00a0 The plants have become fixtures on the retail scene over the last 20 years or so because they are generally attractive, drought tolerant, deer resistant and easy to care for.\u00a0 All of that toughness has a flip side, however, as the plants have reportedly naturalized and gotten out of control in warm climate areas like Florida and Australia.\u00a0 As with many ornamental grasses, long established pennisetum clumps can also be difficult to divide.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Breeders have been hard at work adapting all kinds of plants to fit small-space applications, and they have succeeded with pennisetum.\u00a0 ‘Little Bunny’ and ‘Little Honey’ are both about 12 inches tall at maturity, with silvery “tails.\u00a0 Another variety, ‘Piglet,’ is medium-tall, topping out at 18 inches, and s porting purplish seedheads.
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Pennisetums make nice additions to indoor arrangements, but to have enough for both indoor and outdoor color, you will probably need a big healthy clump.\u00a0 Buy one of those containerized Pennisetum alopecuroides now at the garden center, and you may have enough time to get it in the ground before cold weather sets in.\u00a0 If the plant is happy, you will have that big healthy clump within a couple of years.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Ordinary pennisetums are ubiquitous right now, especially Pennisetum setaceum ‘Rubrum,’ which the “Proven Winners”\u009d plant marketing company selected for inclusion in its widely distributed plant line.\u00a0 For a broader selection, try Plant Delights Nursery, 9241 Sauls Road<\/span>, Raleigh, NC 27603<\/span>, (919) 772-4794, www.plantdelights.com<\/font><\/a>. \u00a0Plant Delights’ unusual fee for its print catalog is either “ten stamps”\u009d or “one box of chocolates.”\u009d
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FOXTAIL GRASS \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The popularity of ornamental grasses rolls on unabated. \u00a0From miscanthus to fescue, they are everywhere–in places as diverse as strip mall parking lots and high-end residential landscapes.\u00a0 It is unfashionable to say so, but I can take or leave most of them.\u00a0 Some, like miscanthus or Chinese ribbon grass, are simply too … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-227","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-fall"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/227","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=227"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/227\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1563,"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/227\/revisions\/1563"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=227"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=227"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=227"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}