© The Dabney Nursery
Plant: Zebra Grass - Miscanthus
Miscanthus sinensis · Miscanthus sinensis 'Zebrinus'
Light
Bloom
Mature size
More about this plant
Zebra grass is a large, clumping ornamental grass with arching, linear blades banded in a variegated pattern, forming a fountain 4 to 6 feet tall and wide. Feathery plumes appear above the foliage in fall. It wants full sun, adapts to most soils except very wet ones, and tolerates drought, salt and wind. Cut it to the ground in winter. Maiden grass is listed as invasive in North Carolina, so site it where it cannot seed into natural areas.
- Full Sun
- Grows to 6 ft tall and 6 ft wide
- Blooms in fall, summer
- Hardy in USDA zones 5-9
- Deciduous foliage
Plant description
Zebra grass is a large, clumping ornamental grass with arching, linear blades banded in a variegated pattern, forming a fountain 4 to 6 feet tall and wide. Feathery plumes appear above the foliage in fall. It wants full sun, adapts to most soils except very wet ones, and tolerates drought, salt and wind. Cut it to the ground in winter. Maiden grass is listed as invasive in North Carolina, so site it where it cannot seed into natural areas.
- Flowers
- A digitate panicle produced in early to late fall, rising 1 to 2 feet above the foliage.
- Foliage
- Long, arching, linear blades about 1/2 inch wide with serrated margins, 4 to 6 feet long; the Zebrinus form is the banded variegated selection of maiden grass.
- Pruning
- Trim foliage back to the ground in winter; divide or move in spring to mid-summer.
- Native range
- China to Malaysia, Russian Far East to temperate eastern Asia
