In our last post we highlighted our favorite Small Scale Evergreen Trees, using our awesome Plantmaster Database. This time we wanted to share some favorite grasses. Truth be told, these selections include “grass like” plants, such as sedges and reeds, as well as true grasses. Many of these grasses are evergreen (indicated with – (EG), providing year round appeal. Grasses are a great component of any planting design, providing a break in texture, form, and color. They range in size from the small Mondo Grass (less than a foot), to towering Miscanthus which may be 6′ or more. These plant genera also host many other interesting and nice cultivars to explore.
Favorite Ornamental Grasses
| Botanical | Common |
|---|---|
| Perennial | |
| Chondropetalum tectorum | Cape Rush (EG) |
| Grass | |
| Calamagrostis X acu. ‘Karl Foerster’ | Karl Foerster Feather Reed Grass |
| Carex divulsa | Berkeley Sedge (EG) |
| Deschampsia ces. ‘Northern Lights’ | Northern Lights Tufted Hair Grass (EG) |
| Festuca ‘Siskyou Blue’ | Siskyou Blue Fescue (EG) |
| Hakonechloa macra ‘Aureola’ | Japanese Forest Grass, Hakone Grass |
| Lomandra ‘Platinum Beauty’ | Platinum Beauty™ Lomandra (EG) |
| Lomandra longifolia ‘Breeze’ | Dwarf Mat Rush (EG) |
| Miscanthus sinensis ‘Morning Light’ | Morning Light Silver Grass |
| Miscanthus transmorrisonensis | Evergreen Miscanthus (EG) |
| Muhlenbergia capillaris ‘Pink Flamingo’ | Pink Flamingo Muhly Grass (EG) |
| Muhlenbergia rigens | Deer Grass (EG) |
| Ophiopogon japonicus | Mondo Grass, Lily Grass (EG) |
| Ophiopogon planiscapus ‘Nigrescens’ | Black Mondo Grass (EG) |
| Pennisetum alo. ‘Hamelin’ | Hamelin Dwarf Fountain Grass |
| Sesleria autumnalis | Autumn Moor Grass (EG) |
| Stipa ichu | Peruvian Feather Grass (EG) |
Perennial
 Chondropetalum tectorum | Cape Rush |
Grass
 Calamagrostis X acu. ‘Karl Foerster’ | Karl Foerster Feather Reed Grass |
 Carex divulsa | Berkeley Sedge |
 Deschampsia ces. ‘Northern Lights’ | Northern Lights Tufted Hair Grass |
 Festuca ‘Siskyou Blue’ | Siskyou Blue Fescue |
 Hakonechloa macra ‘Aureola’ | Japanese Forest Grass, Hakone Grass |
 Lomandra ‘Platinum Beauty’ | Platinum Beauty™ Lomandra |
 Lomandra longifolia ‘Breeze’ | Dwarf Mat Rush |
 Miscanthus sinensis ‘Morning Light’ | Morning Light Silver Grass |
 Miscanthus transmorrisonensis | Evergreen Eulalia |
 Muhlenbergia capillaris ‘Pink Flamingo’ | Pink Flamingo Muhly Grass |
 Muhlenbergia rigens | Deer Grass |
 Ophiopogon japonicus | Mondo Grass, Lily Grass |
 Ophiopogon planiscapus ‘Nigrescens’ | Black Mondo Grass |
 Pennisetum alo. ‘Hamelin’ | Hamelin Dwarf Fountain Grass |
 Sesleria autumnalis | Autumn Moor Grass |
 Stipa ichu | Peruvian Feather Grass |