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THE POTTING SHED'S HELPFUL |
| Briza media | Quaking grass | Small and cute - can mass for ground cover effect |
| Calamagrostis brachytricha |
Fall-blooming Calamagrostis | A beautiful flower - doesn't show up until about September. |
| Calamagrostis xacutifolia |
'Karl Foerster' Feather Reed Grass |
The best of the best - flowers in June and is showy the rest of the year and through the winter |
| Leymus canadensis | Blue Lyme Grass | Grows best in dry sand - spreads by underground runners which in the wrong spot can create headaches! |
| Miscanthus sinensis | Graziella, Morning Light, Variegatus, Strictus, Silberfeder | Very effective landscape plants - and very low maintenance - the selected cultivars of the Miscanthus species should be considered as each has their own distinguishing characteristics - plant en masse for best effect. |
| Molinia litoralis | 'Skyracer', 'Windspiel' | Tall purple moor grasses are airy, graceful flowers that bloom in August - M. caerulea variegata is another one worth a try. |
| Panicum virgatum | Hans Hermse, Shenandoah, Cloud Nine, Northwind etc |
Native prairie grass with many great cultivars -- most are German bred - very drought tolerant as a rule - though a little moisture will always improve the show. |
| Schizachrium scoparium | Little bluestem | A great native plant that is as tough as can be - very showy in the fall months. |
(For more information see our Reference Guide on Sedums!)
| Sedum acre | Biting Stone Crop | A small star-shaped flower that shows off from mid-May and on through the summer - dense dark - green foliage - very acid taste - great for vegetative coverage. |
| Sedum album | Bella d'Inverno' | En masse, the white to light pink are showy throughout the entire summer -- leaves shift to a showy red when drought stressed. |
| Sedum dasyphyllum | Lilac Mound | Lilac mound and straight species both useful - small blue-green foliage - cute flowers but not as dynamic as some of the other sedums - still a favorite of some roof experts! |
| Sedum hispanicum | A little more sensitive to cold temperatures - perhaps pushing it in a tough zone 5 winter - but under favorable conditions spreads quickly - leaf tips turn a light pink as the summer progresses - nice mounding shape - seeds readily - which can be a mixed blessing! | |
| Sedum reflexum | Very showy on the roof and in the garden - spreads by seed and shows up sometimes when you least expect it - great for the rock or dry garden when given plenty of sunshine. | |
| Sedum sediforme | Flowers up to 18" tall - so great since yellow to white flowers rise above some of the shorter sedums - flower spikes showy with clusters on horizontal inflorescences. | |
| Sedum spurium | Many cultivars | Relatively common species - grown in gardens - spreads easily by stolons - with bright white to pink flowers - very attractive and dominant when they come into bloom. |
back to Tough Perennials
Information courtesy of Dr. Art Cameron, Dept. of Horticulture, Michigan State Univ.
