Breaking the Grass Ceiling
For the longest time, grasses, sedges, and rushes weren’t thought of as particularly ornamental in comparison to the innumerable flowering perennials, shrubs and trees that have proven their worthiness in endless gardens worldwide. Luckily, the native plant renaissance and efforts such as Mt. Cuba Center’s Carex Garden Trial have piqued the interests of not only horticulturists, but the general public, when it comes to the incorporation of our spectacularly strappy friends into the ornamental landscape. No longer do we live in a world where Pennisetum and Miscanthus dominate the retail shelves. Slowly, those old-timey grasses are being edged off of their pedestals not only for having questionable spreading habits but, let’s be honest, there are much cooler grasses out there. Sort of like the handful we’ll be talking about this week. So, let’s strap in and take a look at some of these a-maize-ing selections! (Sorry, we couldn’t help ourselves.)
