Culture: Easily grown in average, medium to wet soils in full sun to part shade. Tolerates a wide range of soils, including dry ones, but prefers moist, sandy or clay soils. Tolerates occasional flooding. May flop in overly rich soils. Generally performs best in full sun. Will grow in part shade, but begins to lose its form in too much shade, growing more openly and possibly falling over. Grows primarily in clumps, but will slowly spread by slightly creeping rhizomes. Cut back clumps to the ground in late winter to early spring. Plants may self-seed in optimum growing conditions but cultivars may not
come true from seed.
Noteworthy Characteristics: Panicum virgatum, commonly called switch grass, is a Missouri native ornamental grass which was an important component of the tallgrass prairie which once covered large areas of the State. It occurs in both wet and dry soils in prairies and open woods, gravel bars and stream banks and along railroad tracks throughout most of the State. Switch grass is generally noted for its stiff, columnar form, and typically retains its vertical shape throughout the growing season. It is a clump-forming, warm season grass which typically grows to 3′ tall. When in flower, flower panicles may bring total plant height to 6′. Features medium green leaves which turn yellow (sometimes with orange tints) in autumn, fading to tan-beige in winter. Foliage clump is topped in mid-summer by finely-textured, pink-tinged, branched flower panicles which hover over the foliage like an airy cloud. Panicles turn beige as the seeds mature in fall with the seed plumes persisting well into winter. Seeds are a food source for birds in winter.
Genus name comes from an old Latin word for millet. Specific epithet means twiggy.
Problems: o serious insect or disease problems. Some susceptibility to rust, particularly in hot and humid summer climates. Crown or root rot may occur, particularly as a result of improper growing conditions. Japanese beetles, thrips and spider mites may appear.
Garden Uses: Accent, group or mass. Also effective as a screen. Perennial borders, wild gardens, native plant gardens, prairies, meadows or naturalized areas. Also appropriate for water gardens, bog gardens and along ponds.
Switch Grass (Panicum virgatum) is most attractive in its later stages, from the emerging, purple cloud-like seed heads mid-summer to dried golden foliage in fall. Consider not cutting Switch Grass back late fall in your garden; it holds up well in heavy snow providing winter cover for small mammals and land birds. Birds will also feed on the seeds and the dried foliage adds a splash of pale yellow to the winter landscape.
Switch Grass is clump-forming and rhizomatous. It is a dominant grass of what was the vast tallgrass North American prairie. A prolific self seeder, it should be used with caution in very small landscapes. Switch Grass is a warm-season grass; it actively grows during the summer when soil temperatures are warm.
Price range: $6.00 through $12.00
