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Florida Gardening

ornamental grasses

13 years ago

Hi. I have a property in Edgewater, FL 1/2 block to intracoastal. Loam soil in front yard. Doing a "beach" look. I want to use ornamental grasses and agave and wonder 1) can they co-habitate and 2) can they live in shell covered soil? Also, any help on what type of grass would be very helpful. Thanks for your time. Regards, Kathleen 32, Edgewater, FL 32132

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Comments (3)

fawnridge (Ricky)
13 years ago
Most of the Muhly Grass varieties (Muhlenbergia capillaris) and the Pennisetums - Red Fountain grass, etc. - are all salt tolerant, but they do need good irrigation and fertilizer to look their best. Agaves and aloes are also salt tolerant but they don't want a lot of water so plant them at the periphery of the irrigation field.
chloe92us
13 years ago
My current favorite is Spartina Bakeri or Sand Cordgrass. It's more difficult to find, but there is a grower in Arcadia that sells it (and Muhly grass) in small containers and also Santa Rosa Gardens (although I would wait for a sale).

It is very salt tolerant and does well in many different soils. I look at it and think "beach". The nursery in Arcadia is sandhillgrowers.com...$1.50 for one gallon plants and they grow quickly!!! CHECK THEM OUT!!!! Super nice owners, too, and very helpful.

Here is a link that might be useful: Floridata
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sun_worshiper
13 years ago
I too am looking at adding some ornamental grasses to my yard. I like both fountain grasses and muhly grasses. When is the best time to plant them in FL? I would like to plant in fall since now is a great time to see what the plants look like when picking them out. But I always thought that grasses were better planted in the spring. Any truth to that? Or is now fine?

Are red fountain grasses hardy in zone 9b? That is are they perennial, or are they annuals?

I would also suggest checking out muhlenbergia dumosa, bamboo muhly grass. It is gorgeous. Pictures online just do not do it justice. I had dismissed it as ugly based on online pics, but I happened to see some at my local nursery (Lukas in Oviedo) and it is so graceful. Beautiful, bright green and and a shape like a small bamboo. This is one of the selections I will be adding to my garden. Just fantastic when experienced in person.

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