Unruffled by winter
Feather grasses can take the worst of the cold weather and still thrive, writes David Overend.
Some plants go into winter mode as soon as there’s a whiff of frost; others hold their heads high and continue to provide comfort throughout the long, dark months of winter. So while a lot of the garden sleeps till spring, the likes of Stipa tenuissima, aka feather grass, will take what comes.
Feather grass allows itself to be battered by the elements and then it bounces right back. You can cultivate it in the garden, in a bed or a border, or, better still, give it a container all to itself where, like many more grasses, it can grow to become an attractive specimen.
Stipa tenuissima isn’t just any grass; it’s a neat and very compact, perennial grass, which throws out lots of close-packed, stiff, thread-like stems to a height of two feet.
They remain throughout the winter, but, come summer, the plants are covered with masses of elegant, pale, feathery seedheads which sway in the lightest breeze.
The gardener can leave them where they are or he/she can dry them for adding to indoor floral arrangements. He/she can also use a comb to tease out the tangled stems themselves or simply pull out any loose growth. Alternatively, instead of hacking off the seed-heads, leave them where they are and they will become important as a winter food source for finches and other seed-eating birds.
Feather grass likes a sunny, well-drained spot. It isn’t particularly invasive – an established clump rarely grows wider than two or three feet and it’s relatively easy to keep in check, particularly if grown in that container. To propagate, divide adult plants any time from mid-spring to early summer.
For something even more eye-catching, there’s Carex oshimensis ‘Evergold’, a beautiful evergreen sedge from Japan that has become a star performer in British gardens.
And not forgetting Milium effusum ‘Aureum’, the gorgeous semi-evergreen Bowles’ golden grass. In summer, it produces nondescript flowers, to be followed by armies of seeds.
If you don’t want them appearing in beds, borders, pots, hanging-baskets and almost inaccessible places, cut off the seedheads before they have time to take to the air.