Miscanthus sinensis
Maiden Grass, Eulalia, Silver Feather, Chinese Silver Grass, Eulalia Grass, Japanese Silver Grass
Type Perennial, grass
Hardy range 4A to 9A
Height 6' to 8' / 1.80m to 2.40m
Spread 6' to 10' / 1.80m to 3.00m
Growth rate Fast
Form Upright or erect
Exposure Partial shade or partial sun to full sun
Persistence Deciduous
Bloom Color Pink and red
Bloom Time Summer and Fall
Environment This plant tolerates some drought and occasional wetness. This plant will grow in moist to wet soil. Suitable soil is well-drained/loamy, sandy or clay. The pH preference is an acidic to slightly alkaline (less than 6.8 to 7.7) soil.
Leaf Color Green and variegated
Fall Color Brown, copper and orange
This plant has attractive foliage and attractive fall colors.
The flowers are showy, suitable for cut flowers and suitable for dried flowers.
Culture Notes Maiden Grass is a gracefully arching, fine-textured grass that forms dense, green clumps. Slender leaves originate in a clump, spreading out and up like a fountain. The 5 to 6-foot-tall clumps bear pink flowers in late summer and fall which can be used for drying or as a dye plant. Their pinkish or silvery 8- to 10-inch-long plumes persist into the winter. Foliage is flexible and blows easily in the wind. This shrub-like grass turns to a rich gold in the fall; the fall color lasts through the winter.
Maiden Grass is frequently used in the landscape as a specimen or screen. It is also employed in group plantings forming a nice mass of fine-textured foliage, especially near a water garden or pond. Use Japanese Silver Grass as an accent or mass planted in a large-scale landscape, such as around a commercial building to add a touch of soft elegance and texture. The slightest breeze moves the foliage allowing the landscape to `come alive'.
Maiden Grass requires a location in the landscape that receives full sun, but it is adaptable to most well-drained soils. This ornamental grass is quite drought tolerant. Miscanthus sinensis is a warm season grass and transplants best in the spring. Provide good drainage at the planting site. Three- and four-year-old plants tend to flop over and might thin in the center of the clump. They can be divided or cut back to encourage more upright growth.
Miscanthus will go dormant to the roots during the winter. The old foliage should be removed from the plants in the spring. This allows the new growth to come through unimpeded.
Cultivars include: `Condensatus', coarser leaf texture than species, mid-summer bloom, 7 to 8 feet tall; `Gracillimus', narrower leaves than species, Fall bloom, upright growth habit from 5 to 8 feet tall; `Purpurascens', reddish foliage in summer, purple-red foliage in fall, silver pink inflorescence, mid-summer bloom, 4 to 5 feet tall; `Silver Feather', silvery white flowers in mid-summer; `Strictus', horizontal yellow bands on foliage, upright growth habit, 6 to 8 feet tall; `Variegatus', white variegation on leaf margin, does relatively well in partial shade, to 7 feet tall; `Yaku Jima', more compact, 3 to 4 feet tall; `Zebrinus', horizontal yellow bands on foliage, wide spreading habit, to 7 feet tall.
Pests, Diseases and Damaging Agents Diseases: Rust occasionally infests the foliage but it often goes away in drier weather.
Phlox paniculata 'Starfire' syn. Phlox decussata
