Dave - where the heck are you finding seeds of Pennisetum setaceum 'Rubrum'???!!! Not. Oh Rubrum seeds are offered for sale out there but are a rip off. Not so much that they are sterile but 99% are harvested too early and aren't mature enough to be viable. I should have been more clear that I was addressing the title of the post - sowing ornamental grass seeds in general. Dave Here is a link that might be useful: Rubrum viability discussion

I'd cut the grass very short, rake with a stiff rake, seed it than water regularly. A little more soil added first might help improve germination but some seeds probably will germinate with or without it. JUst don't mow again or you'll mow off your new seedlings. Not sure what you have in mind for future years with that bed, but if you have a good mix of perennials and self-planting annuals it would help. Be sure to include some wildflowers that reseed in your area easily. (For me that would include poppies, nicotiana, nasturtium, petunia, etc), as well as some perennials and the area could become self sustaining. Maybe add some herb seeds too. Many online seed sites sell regional wildflower mixes that you could mix with what you already have. Even Walmart has large, cheap packs of wildflowers that you could mix in. I'd be sure to include poppies, larkspur, and cornflowers! Karen

Based on your requirements I would suggest; painted concrete! That is my usual suggestion to anyone who wants to grow living plants under lousy condions & with no maintenance needed. It is an impossible request. More kindly, I would definitely say NO to the idea of seed. Any of the weeds already growing in this area will have seeded in the soil. As seedlings you will be unable to tell the difference between the plants you want & those you don't. Really, if you don't want to do any work, an inorganic solution would probably be the best. How about putting down a landscape fabric topped by mulch or river rock? If you still wanted plants you could put a holes in the fabric, improve the soil slightly in those spots & then plant a hardy tough grass. For the sunny spots Little Bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium)might survive your conditions and would be trouble free for your neighbour. Shady dry spots are a little more difficult....... good luck, A.

Most ornamental grasses which are reliably hardy in your zone, will create viable seed, from which you can grow more plants. However, grasses, especially variegated and specially colored named cultivars will probably not grow true to the special characteristics of the parent plant. I have hundreds of grasses which were grown from seed. Here's a partial list: Anthoxanthum odoratum.. Sweet Vernal Grass Briza maxima.. Annual Quaking Grass Briza media.. Quaking Grass Calamagrostis brachytricha..Fall Blooming Feather Reed Grass Carex comans 'Bronze Form'..Bronze New Zealand Hair Sedge Carex grayi.. Gray's Sedge Carex muskingumensis.. Palm Sedge Chasmanthium latifolium.. Northern Sea Oats Cortaderia selloana.. Pampas Grass Deschampsia caespitosa.. Tufted Hairgrass Elymus hystrix.. Bottlebrush Grass Eragrostis spectabilis.. Purple Love Grass Festuca gigantea.. Giant Fescue Festuca glauca.. Blue Fescue Festuca mairei.. Maire's Fescue Festuca scoparia.. syn. Festuca gautieri..Bearskin Fescue Helictotrichon sempervirens..Blue Oat Grass Hierochloe odorata..Sweetgrass, Holy grass Lagurus ovatus.. Bunny Tails - Annual Luzula nivea.. Snowy Woodrush Luzula sylvatica.. Greater Woodrush Miscanthus sinensis 'Central Park'..Maiden Grass Miscanthus sinensis.. 'New Hybrids'..Maiden Grass, Eulalia Grass Nassella tenuissima.. Mexican Feather Grass Panicum virgatum.. Switch Grass Panicum virgatum 'Strictum'..Switch Grass Pennisetum glaucum 'Purple Majesty'..Ornamental Millet..Annual Pennisetum alopecuroides.. Fountain Grass Pennisetum alopecuroides 'Moudry'.. Black Seeded Fountain Grass Pennisetum orientale..Oriental Fountain Grass Saccharum ravennae..Ravenna Grass Sesleria caerulea.. Blue Moor Grass Setaria faberi.. Giant Foxtail - Annual Sporobolus heterolepis..Prairie Dropseed Stipa capillata.. Feather Grass Tridens flavus.. Purple Top