Botanical Name: Pennisetum setaceum 'Rubrum'
Common Name: Fountain grass (Red)

 

Use: Outdoors
Indigenous/Exotic : Exotic
Evergreen/Deciduous : Evergreen
Plant Type : Perennial
Flower Colour : Pink
Foliage Colour : Purple-red
Best Season : Summer
Light : Sun
Hardiness : Semi-hardy
Attributes :  
Height (m) : 1.0
Spread (m) : 0.5
    
Notes : Few of the ornamental grasses are as attractive as red Fountain Grass, with its purple-red leaves and graceful, rosy-pink plumes. Easy to grow and particularly well-suited to many parts of South Africa, this grass is ideal for planting around ponds, pools and other water features. Its strong colour makes it a good contrast to the plain green of other ornamental grasses, reeds and sedges, and it can be most effective in a mixed bed or border to provide both colour and foliage contrast. In a conifer garden, red Fountain Grass makes a good foil to the dense conifer foliage. An attractive groundcover which blends well with this grass is the ground Polygonum, with its reddish-bronze leaves. The plain green Fountain Grass (Pennisetum setaceum) also makes an attractive garden subject.

 

Tolerant of light to moderate frost and of fairly dry conditions and wind, this dwarf grass can be grown almost everywhere, with the exception of areas of very severe frost.

 

To ensure rich red foliage, plant red fountain grass in a sunny position, in any ordinary garden soil. In very dry areas it will benefit from regular watering, especially in summer.