Plant Encyclopedia

Other Names:  Japanese Silver Grass

Description:

A compact variety with a neat, mounded habit, great for small spaces and containers; green emerging foliage matures to brilliant red-purple tones in summer, becoming more intense in fall; red summer flowers set seed heads that persist through fall

Ornamental Features

Little Miss Maiden Grass features bold plumes of red flowers rising above the foliage from mid summer to late fall. The flowers are excellent for cutting. The silver seed heads are carried on showy plumes displayed in abundance from mid fall to late winter. Its grassy leaves emerge green in spring, turning cherry red in colour with showy rose variegation and tinges of plum purple. As an added bonus, the foliage turns gorgeous shades of red and purple in the fall.

Landscape Attributes

Little Miss Maiden Grass is an herbaceous perennial grass with a mounded form. Its relatively fine texture sets it apart from other garden plants with less refined foliage.

This plant will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and is best cleaned up in early spring before it resumes active growth for the season. It is a good choice for attracting birds to your yard, but is not particularly attractive to deer who tend to leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Little Miss Maiden Grass is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• Hedges/Screening
• General Garden Use
• Groundcover
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Little Miss Maiden Grass will grow to be about 24 inches tall at maturity extending to 3 feet tall with the flowers, with a spread of 24 inches. It has a low canopy with a typical clearance of 1 foot from the ground. It grows at a medium rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 20 years. As an herbaceous perennial, this plant will usually die back to the crown each winter, and will regrow from the base each spring. Be careful not to disturb the crown in late winter when it may not be readily seen!

This plant does best in full sun to partial shade. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. It is not particular as to soil pH, but grows best in rich soils. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America. It can be propagated by division; however, as a cultivated variety, be aware that it may be subject to certain restrictions or prohibitions on propagation.

Little Miss Maiden Grass is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. Because of its height, it is often used as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the center of the pot, surrounded by smaller plants and those that spill over the edges. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden. Be aware that in our climate, most plants cannot be expected to survive the winter if left in containers outdoors, and this plant is no exception. Contact our experts for more information on how to protect it over the winter months.

This plant is not reliably hardy in our region, and certain restrictions may apply; contact the store for more information.