17 Top Ornamental Grasses

Give your garden four seasons of interest with low-maintenance grasses. Here are some of the best varieties.

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Feather Reedgrass

Fountaingrass

Video: Dividing Grasses

Little Bluestem

Switchgrass

Blue Oatgrass

Purple Millet

Cordgrass

Japanese Forestgrass

Maidengrass

Fiber Opticgrass

Ravennagrass

Purple Fountaingrass

Northern Sea Oats

Zebragrass

Purple Moorgrass

Hairgrass

Blue Fescue

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Feather Reedgrass

The most popular ornamental grass, feather reedgrass offers a distinct upright habit that looks fantastic all winter long. Like many grasses, this tough plant tolerates a wide range of conditions.

Name: Calamagrostis 'Karl Foerster'

Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil

Size: To 6 feet tall

Zones: 5-9

Plant This Grass Because: It has a nice architectural shape.

Native to North America: No

Learn more about growing feather reedgrass.

Fountaingrass

A beautiful, mounding plant, fountaingrass offers a beautiful shape -- as well as soft, feathery plumes that dance in the breeze.

Name: Pennisetum alopecuroides

Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil

Size: To 5 feet tall

Zones: 5-9

Plant This Grass Because: It offers a graceful, arching shape and beautiful plumes.

Native to North America: No

Learn more about growing fountaingrass!

Video: Dividing Grasses

Watch this quick video for tips on dividing ornamental grasses to keep them healthy and beautiful.

Little Bluestem

A lovely, tough-as-nails prairie native, little bluestem offers gray-green leaf blades that turn bold shades of purple, red, and orange in autumn.

Name: Schizachyrium scoparium

Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil

Size: To 3 feet tall

Zones: 4-9

Plant This Grass Because: It has beautiful blue coloring in summer and good fall color.

Native to North America: Yes

Learn more about growing little bluestem.

Switchgrass

One of our favorite grasses, switchgrass offers airy plumes in late summer and fall. It looks great during the season, too: Many varieties (such as 'Dallas Blues') offer blue-gray foliage during the season and turn brilliant shades of gold or red in autumn.

Name: Panicum virgatum

Growing Conditions: Full sun or part shade and well-drained soil

Size: To 5 feet tall

Zones: 4-9

Plant This Grass Because: It's good for wildlife, has beautiful fall color, and tolerates partial shade.

Native to North America: Yes

Learn more about growing switchgrass.

Blue Oatgrass

It's tough to beat blue oatgrass for a low-care plant with steel-blue color. It also has a wonderful mounded habit and won't spread and take over your garden.

Name: Helictotrichon sempervirens

Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil

Size: To 4 feet tall

Zones: 4-9

Plant This Grass Because: It has beautiful silvery-blue color.

Native to North America: No

Learn more about blue oatgrass.

Purple Millet

This incredibly tough annual grass offers fantastic burgundy foliage and rich purple foliage that look like fuzzy cattails. The plants are beautiful and attract birds.

Name: Pennisetum glaucum

Growing Conditions: Full sun or part shade and well-drained soil

Size: To 5 feet tall

Zones: Annual

Plant This Grass Because: It has rich purple foliage.

Native to North America: No

Cordgrass

An underutilized selection, cordgrass is a spreading prairie grass that thrives in moist or wet soils. As such, it's a good choice for growing along the side of a pond or stream.

Name: Spartina pectinata

Growing Conditions: Full sun and moist soil

Size: To 7 feet tall

Zones: 4-7

Plant This Grass Because: It doesn't mind moist, or even wet, soils.

Native to North America: Yes

Japanese Forestgrass

One of our favorite low-growing species, this gorgeous plant offers a perfect mounding habit. Variegated selections (such as 'Aureola' or 'All Gold') bear brightly colored foliage that light up shady corners.

Name: Hakonechloa macra 'Aureola'

Growing Conditions: Part shade and well-drained soil

Size: To 1 foot tall

Zones: 5-9

Plant This Grass Because: It adds bright color to shade gardens.

Native to North America: No

Learn more about fabulous Japanese forestgrass.

Maidengrass

One of the most common grasses, maidengrass is big, beautiful, and easy to grow. It offers narrow, arching foliage (many selections are variegated; look for them to add more color to your landscape) and silvery plumes that are enchanting when the light catches them just right.

Name: Miscanthus sinensis

Growing Conditions: Full sun and moist, well-drained soil

Size: To 8 feet tall

Zones: 4-9

Plant This Grass Because: It has pretty plumes and a graceful arching habit.

Native to North America: No

Learn more about growing maidengrass.

Fiber Opticgrass

An unusual tender perennial often grown as an annual, fiber opticgrass has a fine texture and low, mounding habit perfect for container gardens.

Name: Isolepis cernua

Growing Conditions: Full sun or part shade and moist soil

Size: To 6 inches tall

Zones: 10-11 (usually grown as an annual in colder Zones)

Plant This Grass Because: It fits in small spaces and has an unusual appearance.

Native to North America: Yes

Learn more about growing fiber opticgrass.

Ravennagrass

A massive, fast-growing perennial, ravennagrass sends up towering, silvery plumes that can top 10 feet. It makes a strong statement in the autumn landscape.

Name: Saccharum ravennae

Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil

Size: To 12 feet tall

Zones: 6-9

Plant This Grass Because: It's tall and has beautiful plumes.

Native to North America: No

Learn more about ravennagrass.

Purple Fountaingrass

A favorite of gardeners everywhere because of its burgundy-red foliage all season long, this tender perennial is often used in container gardens.

Name: Pennisetum setaceum 'Purpureum'

Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil

Size: To 3 feet tall

Zones: 9-10 (grown as an annual in cooler climates)

Plant This Grass Because: It offers rich, deep purple color.

Native to North America: No

Northern Sea Oats

This fast-spreading species is loved for its interesting seed heads, which hang off the stems and look like wind chimes. Note: It is a fast spreader, so plant with care.

Name: Chasmanthium latifolium

Growing Conditions: Full sun or part shade and well-drained soil

Size: To 3 feet tall

Zones: 5-9

Plant This Grass Because: Its seed heads are great in fall.

Native to North America: Yes

Learn more about growing northern sea oats.

Zebragrass

We love zebragrass because of its bold color: Each leaf blade features a series of bright yellow bands. The plant really stands out in the landscape! Zebragrass also has a nice upright habit that looks great in the perennial border.

Name: Miscanthus sinensis 'Strictus'

Growing Conditions: Full sun and moist, well-drained soil

Size: To 5 feet tall

Zones: 4-9

Plant This Grass Because: It has boldly colored foliage.

Native to North America: No

Learn more about growing zebragrass.

Purple Moorgrass

Purple moorgrass offers delightful mounding foliage that turns brilliant gold in autumn. It's a nice choice for partially shaded gardens.

Name: Molinia caerulea

Growing Conditions: Full sun or part shade and moist soil

Size: To 5 feet tall

Zones: 5-9

Plant This Grass Because: It has a bold shape, good fall color, and tolerates part shade.

Native to North America: No

Learn more about purple moorgrass.

Hairgrass

Hairgrass is an evergreen (depending on climate) grass with airy plumes in shades of golden, silver, purple, and green. The plant has an attractive mounding habit, as well.

Name: Deschampsia cespitosa

Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade and moist, well-drained soil

Size: To 6 feet tall

Zones: 5-9

Plant This Grass Because: It doesn't mind part shade or consistently moist soil.

Native to North America: No