Ornamental grasses add a lot to the lawn

In places other than the Hamptons, the word “grass” might not call to mind lush, ornate gardens and beautifully landscaped lawns that complement the architecture and style of a home, but here on the East End, grass is serious business.

And all grass is not the same. There are many different species.

Choosing the types of grass to plant is dependent on the intended use of the lawn. Vigorous, coarse grasses are often used in high-traffic areas, but typically one would find much finer, softer grasses on ornamental lawns.

Many East End lawns use a combination of various types of grass seeds, such as bluegrass and rye, particularly because of the two different kinds of soil out here—sand and clay. But it’s the use of ornamental grasses that can really make a lawn stand out from the neighborhood pack.

Ornamental grasses, such as weeping love grass or

panicum

, are particularly sought after and can enhance a garden with little maintenance and work.

According to landscaper John Sheehan, who owns his own Westhampton Beach company Sheehan Landscaping, most ornamental grasses are over 2 feet tall and have a plume that blooms in the late summer or early fall. Mr. Sheehan explained that these two features, the height and plume, distinguish the ornamental varieties from lawn or turf grasses.

Throughout the spring and summer, most ornamental grass is green, greenish white or yellow. In the fall and winter months, the grass turns straw, rusty-red or brown colored, Mr. Sheehan said. But even if ornamental grasses lose their greenish vibrancy in the winter months, they still can be a “winter interest,” according to Melodie Primus, a plant buyer at Marders Garden Shop in Bridgehampton.

“They’re still interesting in the winter,” Ms. Primus said.

She explained that tall, straw-like grass adds to the landscaping of a home in the wintertime, whereas many flowers and bushes add little to a snowy, dry garden.

“I like to listen to it rustle in the wind in the winter,” Ms. Primus said.

As well as providing a certain aesthetic element, ornamental grasses can also be an inexpensive addition to a garden. Mr. Sheehan said that a 2- to 3-gallon ornamental grass container costs as little as $15 to $25. Another benefit is that the ornamental grasses grow and spread over time, making the initial $15 to $25 purchase a long-term investment, Mr. Sheehan explained.

Another grass expert, Pam Healey, who is the manager at Lynch’s Garden Center in Southampton, said that

pennisetum

is a great ornamental grass. The variety is a shorter grass that is about 3 feet tall and has bottle-brush-type plumes on top.

Another popular ornamental grass is the 2-foot-tall

eragrostis curvula

, also known as weeping love grass. This plant earned its name because it grows upward and falls over, like it’s weeping, Ms. Healey said.

Little bluestem, or

schizachyrium scoparium

, is an indigenous grass on the East End, as well as the entire eastern U.S., Ms. Healey said. Little bluestem is about 2 to 5 feet tall with a fluffy plume and bluish foliage.

Another colorful ornamental grass is

muhlenbergia capillaris

, also known as pink hair grass, which retains its vividness into late fall.

Ms. Healey said that the types of grass she discussed also add an element of height and dimension to a lawn or garden. “All the grasses are architectural. They stand upright, you can create more with them,” Ms. Healey said.

Mr. Sheehan agreed that the ornamental grasses add movement and sound to a garden, whereas most flowers just provide something beautiful to observe, or in some cases, smell.

“They look well against a dark background and catch the morning and evening light,” Mr. Sheehan said of ornamental grasses, adding that they look good with evergreens and berry-creating shrubs as well as contrast against large-leaf perennials.

Ornamental grasses do very well on Long Island and most seaside locations because they can take to any soil, whether it’s alkaline or acidic, according to Mr. Sheehan.

Ms. Primus explained that the sometimes sandy soil on Long Island also does not pose a problem to ornamental grasses, as they are very hardy, even in the face of a water scarcity.

“They are drought-tolerant.” Ms. Primus said. “They don’t need fussing, they don’t need bedding, like a flower would.”

She also noted another benefit in that weeds pose little threat to ornamental grasses. “Most of the time they’re thick growers and weeds aren’t a problem because they’re so dense,” Ms. Primus said.

The

hakonechloa macra aureola

variety of ornamental grass was touted by Ms. Primus. She noted that it is the current perennial plant of the year, as selected by the Perennial Plant Association.

“It’s an outstanding performer,” Ms. Primus said. “I’m expecting that we’ll sell a lot because it’s getting a lot of press.”

The

hakonechloa macra aureola

is a low grower, meaning that it grows to only 1 or 2 feet, versus the typical 5- to 6-foot height of other grasses. It is shade tolerant as well, whereas most grasses require plenty of sun.

“It’s a brightish yellow, without a plume, except a small one in the fall,” Ms. Primus said, adding that the plant shifts from its bright yellow color in the summer months to a rusty red in the autumn.

The benefits of ornamental grasses seem to last over the years, Ms. Healey explained, since the plants proliferate easily. She said that once an ornamental grass is planted, it will “last conceivably forever.”

But of course, there is a downside to the hardy growers. Mr. Sheehan reported that, at times, ornamental grasses can become overgrown, consuming a garden.

To avoid this, it’s important to divide the grasses. To do this, a gardener digs up a clump and divides it like a pizza pie into eight segments using a knife or machete, Mr. Sheehan said. Each of the eight clumps should then be placed around the garden.

Dividing the grass controls the size of the plant, and also creates more plants to use. Mr. Sheehan said. Additionally, in the wintertime, gardeners should cut back their grasses to allow them to re-bloom better in the early spring, Mr. Sheehan explained.

Mr. Sheehan said that one of his preferred type of ornamental grasses is

pennisetum,

also known

as

fountain grass. Hameln is a smaller variety of the

pennisetum

grass, Mr. Sheehan said.

“It’s about 2 feet tall, it’s a smaller grass,” Mr. Sheehan said, explaining that it can be used to accent the border of a garden. “It’s like a dwarf.”

Mr. Sheehan said he also likes

gracillimus

, which has slender gray leaves that grow 5 to 6 feet tall and does not show its feathery plume until later in September or October.

Unlike so many flower varieties, grasses are also deer and pestilence resistant, Mr. Sheehan said. He said that for the most part, grasses are very popular not only for their looks and hardiness, but also because they are virtually pest and disease resistant.