Best Ornamental Grasses For Southern California

Bentgrass growing well at the university of california cooperative extension in sacramento county.

Best ornamental grasses for southern california.

These tall narrow blades turn a deep green with thick lush coverage when conditions are ideal. This water wise grass is the most resilient to foot traffic making it great for families with kids. Tall fescue grass source. If you only think of grass as something you mow it s time you discovered ornamental grasses.

This is the most common grass in southern california due to a higher heat tolerance for the hotter seasons while still primarily being a cool season option for a wide temperature range. They add beautiful texture and diversity to your landscaping and can easily create borders or even add a pop of color. That makes choosing the best grass a tall order. The california aster aster chilensis is native to coastal california and is a low growing drought tolerant perennial that provides beautiful color in late summer and early fall.

Lomandra longifoliais even fragrant. Native california bentgrass agrostis pallens. The beauty of these denizens of decorative grasses like prairie marsh seashore and forest lies in their graceful fountainlike foliage and remarkable floral displays. California native grasses play a unique and important role in providing cover nesting materials and additional food sources for beneficial garden friendly wildlife.

Many of these plants such as scirpus carex juncus and are great in or near water. A unique and important role for grasses. The ornamental grasses will rustle in the wind. In some cases to make a very lush environment such as with setaria palmifolia.

While it is not native to southern california it does very well in southern california gardens. It uses about half the water traditional bermuda grass does.