The grass isn’t always greener
Magnificent miscanthus puts on a spectacular autumn show – and it comes in a rainbow of colours
AS A young, wetbehind-the-ears nursery worker, I built up a close relationship with an ornamental grass called Miscanthus sinensis ‘Zebrinus’. We sold thousands of them to local landscapers, and for five years I was responsible for making sure there were enough to satisfy demand.
I watered, pruned, weeded, repotted and propagated this evergreen species, which forms large clumps of green and yellow-banded leaves topped by stalks of feathery flower heads in autumn.
During my tenure it was the only miscanthus ever grown by the nursery, and I left thinking it must be the sole member of the family.
Of course, I was completely wrong. After joining the gardening staff at a horticultural college, I found several varieties in the borders I helped to tend. With my interest piqued, I carried out some research and was surprised to discover there were lots of different ones.
Over the intervening decades many more have appeared on the scene, and currently close to 150 evergreen and deciduous varieties are available in the UK.
The plants turn heads between late summer and mid-autumn with their spectacular, feathery plumes that rise above robust clumps of arching foliage.
As miscanthus are in full flight now, I recommend visiting a garden well-known for its grasses. Use it as an opportunity to peruse different varieties and then snap up your favourites at a nursery or online supplier.
Pot-grown specimens will establish readily in moist soil, ready to burst into life with the arrival of warmer weather in spring.
Among my favourite places to see miscanthus are Knoll Gardens in Dorset, RHS
Wisley Gardens and Bressingham Gardens in Norfolk, which is home to a collection of about 70 varieties. Bear in mind that prebooking is essential for many gardens at present, so check online before travelling.
Miscanthus are native largely to China, Japan and the Korean peninsula, where they can be found growing in a wide range of locations, from damp meadows to mountainsides.
They arrived on our shores in the late 19th Century and were popular with pioneering gardeners such as William Robinson and Gertrude Jekyll. A few new varieties appeared in the early 20th Century, but it wasn’t until the 1960s that the range ballooned, primarily with the breeding work of Ernst Pagels in Germany, who developed 50 varieties including ‘Flamingo’ and ‘Grosse Fontane’, followed by the efforts of Kurt Bluemel at his eponymous nursery in the US.
Plants vary hugely in size from compact gems to towering giants, with 18in to 12ft stems that are clothed with leaves up to threequarters of their height, and are topped with flowers in shades of white, silver, pink, red or purple.
Even after the flowers fade, seed heads continue to add structural interest long into winter.
Their flower heads might be the main draw, but some miscanthus have attractive foliage. ‘Gold Bar’, ‘Hinjo’, ‘Cosmopolitan’ and several others have variegated leaves, while the plain green leaves of many deciduous varieties turn up the heat in autumn by taking on yellow, red and orange tints.
Like most grasses, miscanthus prefer a sunny spot and fairly fertile, well-drained soil – plants are likely to rot if they sit in soggy soil over winter.
Taller ones make great focal points or backdrops for perennials, while medium-size varieties will make an impact when planted in groups within beds and borders.
Another option is to display compact varieties in large containers. Start them off in 12in pots filled with good-quality compost – I like to use multi-purpose with added John Innes. Either move plants into slightly bigger pots every one to two years, or decant the rootball, divide the clump in half and replant a portion.
Miscanthus are tough grasses that are rarely bothered by pests and diseases.
All you need to do to keep plants in shape is to cut off seed heads whenever they start to look shabby, usually in late winter.
In early spring, chop deciduous clumps back to within 6in of the ground, avoiding emerging shoots.