August 5th, 2021
Summer Grasses are Blooming!
If there are any plants that have been enjoying the summer heat it has been the summer flowering grasses. They are looking great right now with their blooms coming into full colour. Grasses add structure and beauty to your garden. Their height makes an excellent backdrop to your annual or perennial flower beds and the graceful movement in a light wind provides an element of beauty with their subtle movements.
One of the best summer grasses for your garden is the Panicum ‘Heavy Metal’, also known as “Switch Grass”. This beautiful grass has airy summer flowers on top of 3 to 4 foot high stems. The bright blue leaves then turn red and yellow in the fall. During the winter the leaves then turn a tan colour, remaining through the winter months when many of your other plants have died back to the ground. They are great in mixed borders, as an accent in a pot or container, or in mass plantings in a garden. Panicum grows best in moint to rich soil in full to partial sun. They are hardy to zone 3 (-40 to -34 C, or -40 to -30 F).
