Don't "panic"! "Switch" over to the perennial native ornamental grass Panicum (aka Switch grass). In addition to serving as the source plant of the biofuel movement, Panicum is the dominant grass in US prairies. With an airy upright form, panicum contrasts well with bolder-textured plants. Perennial ornamental grasses such as panicum are real showstoppers in fall when airy plumes top the foliage.
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Throughout the rest of the growing season, switchgrass provides architectural form and fantastic foliage color, both hallmarks of a well-designed garden. You can buy switchgrass in a variety of foliage colors including green, blue, and purple. Switchgrass also varies in habit from arching to upright...something to fit into any garden design.
As you might expect from a native prairie grass, Panicum likes full sun, is drought-tolerant once established, deer-resistant, and easy to grow. Gardeners looking to buy ornamental grasses can find a wide variety for sale. Here at Plant Delights Nursery we specialize in new, special, and hard-to-find ornamental grasses including switchgrass for sale to gardeners around the world. When you are ready to buy panicum for your garden, check out our online offering of panicum for sale below.
Since 1988, Plant Delights Nursery has been the choice of serious gardeners and plant collectors looking for the best and rarest perennial plants. We are pleased to have received the Perennial Plant Association Retail Award in 2011, the American Horticulture Society Commercial Award in 2002, and to have been selected as one of the Best Mail Order Plant Sources - Garden Design Magazine 2010. Welcome to our family of plant lovers!
Named after the Cowboys who were defeated by the Redskins on national TV...just kidding, this Ken and Linda Smith selection of our native switchgrass is among the most stunning forms ever selected. Originally found in Dallas, Texas, it has grown equally well in the cold Midwest. Panicum 'Dallas Blues' makes an upright deer-resistant clump of pendent, powder-blue foliage to 5' tall, topped in early fall with stunning plumes of reddish purple. The flower heads are unlike any other panicum, as the flowers appear in distinct layers. Even without the foliage, these plumes are just waiting to become a flower arrangement. We predict certain stardom for this grass! Pot Size: 2 qt. (1.892 L)
From Roy Diblik of Northwind Perennial Farm comes another fabulously different selection of our native switchgrass...yes, it is completely different. The wide, olive-green foliage makes the strongest vertical accent of any of the switchgrasses we have grown. This vigorous deer-resistant grower is topped in September with attractive narrow plumes, held incredibly erect atop the foliage. Everyone who sees Panicum 'Northwind' rates it as one of the best! Pot Size: 2 qt. (1.892 L)
Panicum 'Ruby Ribbons' came about thanks to the breeding program of University of Connecticut's plant breeder, Dr. Mark Brand. His deer-resistant hybrid (Panicum 'Heavy Metal' x Panicum 'Hans Herme') produces a 4' tall, upright specimen emerging with blue-grey foliage that begins taking on a burgundy-red hue as early as midsummer. The foliage color intensifies as the season progresses, serving as a nice foil when the clumps are topped with airy 4' tall flower spikes in late summer, which dry and last well into the winter. The plant was actually named with the invalid and stupid cultivar name 'RR1', so we have made their trade name the official cultivar name. Pot Size: 2 qt. (1.892 L)
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