@VictorMeldrew, I had a Stipa gigantea with flower stalks that splayed out like yours. Luckily I had enough room for it to do so and it looked wonderful. However, I've since removed it as I wanted to reclaim that space for other plants. There is a variety that is more compact and the flower stalks grow distinctly vertically called Stipa Goldilocks.
Ooooh .... I'll keep a look out for that one. Thanks. My Stipa gigantea is here to stay though as I raised it from a seed I picked up off the path in Sheffield Botanical Gardens. It took 12 months to germinate, and then another few months before I was sure it was Stipa. It's been in the ground now for 3 years and I've already had to extend the bed around it. A few of the old Verbena bonariensis seedlings must have survived underneath it cos' I had their tall flower stems coming up through it late summer last year
@Lizzie27 I'll make sure to water it regularly in the spring this year if we're lucky enough to get some settled dry weather. Ironic really - it was sitting in a flood last week although it drained away quite quickly. We're on clay here but the front garden bed it's in is one of our few that the previous owner must have topped off with a load of really good well-draining loamy soil.
Clay soil - Cheshire/Derbyshire border. I play with plants and soil and sometimes it's successful
Yes, I trim mine in February following the advice on the Knoll Gardens website which said to do it just as the snowdrops come out.
Thanks. Just looked at Knoll Gardens and they are now saying this:
"These ornamental grasses are Evergreen: Comb or rake off any old, tired or dead leaves and flowers in spring. If needed evergreens can be cut back (by up to half) at almost any time from April to July. Do not cut back in autumn or winter."
Think I'll commit to the painstaking tidy up as I did last year
Clay soil - Cheshire/Derbyshire border. I play with plants and soil and sometimes it's successful
Calamagrostis and Panicum are fine cut back now. Stipas are evergreen grasses so technically should not be cut back but I tidy mine anyway! I live in the Midlands and I grow just the one Panicum, it is in a warm sheltered part of the garden. In cooler spots of the garden it is slow and does not flower.
I have worked as a Gardener for 24 years. My latest garden is a new build garden on heavy clay.
Ah, right. Thanks Ben. Interesting though when you read this that there's a caveat around mild winters such as the current one where the grasses don't actually become fully dormant. They propose a slightly different approach with a more careful, less severe cut-back. Either way it's obvious they come back at some point.
Clay soil - Cheshire/Derbyshire border. I play with plants and soil and sometimes it's successful
Posts
@Lizzie27 I'll make sure to water it regularly in the spring this year if we're lucky enough to get some settled dry weather. Ironic really - it was sitting in a flood last week although it drained away quite quickly. We're on clay here but the front garden bed it's in is one of our few that the previous owner must have topped off with a load of really good well-draining loamy soil.
I play with plants and soil and sometimes it's successful
Thanks. Just looked at Knoll Gardens and they are now saying this:
"These ornamental grasses are Evergreen: Comb or rake off any old, tired or dead leaves and flowers in spring. If needed evergreens can be cut back (by up to half) at almost any time from April to July. Do not cut back in autumn or winter."
Think I'll commit to the painstaking tidy up as I did last year
I play with plants and soil and sometimes it's successful
Interesting, this is Knoll's current advice on their website: Stipa gigantea – Knoll Gardens | Ornamental Grasses and Flowering Perennials
https://www.bethchatto.co.uk/discover/our-blog/advice/spring-cleaning-grasses.htm
Thanks for your kind comment, Nanny B.
Ah, right. Thanks Ben. Interesting though when you read this that there's a caveat around mild winters such as the current one where the grasses don't actually become fully dormant. They propose a slightly different approach with a more careful, less severe cut-back. Either way it's obvious they come back at some point.
I play with plants and soil and sometimes it's successful