This is the perfect plant for a low maintenance garden or beginner gardener wanting to experiment with natives.
Use as a tree to add scale and height to a garden, in groupings or tightly spaced in windbreaks.
This low maintenance perennial is a favorite of our designer, Danielle Buesch, because of its unique flower color and its importance to the natural environment as a native.
Characteristics
Height: 6-8’ Spread: 2-3’ Zones: 4-9 Growth Rate: Medium
Cultural Requirements
A low maintenance ornamental grass, Northwind Switch grass prefers moist well-drained soil, but will tolerate most soil conditions including dry ones. This grass performs at its best in full sun, however not ideal but it will grow in part shade conditions. Minimal care is required for growing this plant in your garden; only needing to be cut back to the ground in late winter or early spring.
Ornamental Features
2014 Perennial Plant of the Year, Northwind Switch grass offers stunning architectural foliage that can make bold statement in the landscape. In late summer an airy cloud of seed heads appear above the vertical foliage and soften the plant. The foliage and seed heads change from an attractive blue-green summer color to a yellow fall color and add significant winter interest to the landscape.
Landscape Uses
Our supervisor and project manager Ernie Huey loves incorporating grasses into the landscape. A versatile plant, they work great massed in groups in naturalized gardens, as a backdrop for other perennials, and as an alternative screening plant to the typically used shrubbery.
This is the perfect plant for a low maintenance garden or beginner gardener wanting to experiment with natives.
Use as a tree to add scale and height to a garden, in groupings or tightly spaced in windbreaks.
This low maintenance perennial is a favorite of our designer, Danielle Buesch, because of its unique flower color and its importance to the natural environment as a native.
