It’s midsummer and all house and garden owners spend as much time as possible outside. There you can enjoy the splendor of the summer flowers and listen to the birdsong or the breeze blowing through the leaves in the silence. The garden turns into the favorite place for millions of people who want to feel close to nature every day. In order to make your stay outdoors even more pleasant, we constantly give you, our loyal readers, clever tips and interesting ideas on how to make the garden, balcony or terrace even more beautiful, attractive and inviting. Today we focus our attention on a decorative grass. The following is about the pennisetum and how to care for it outside in the garden bed or in a pot on the balcony. If you also want to give your outdoor area a picturesque touch, then you can plant the magnificent ornamental grass outside. You will find useful information and care tips for the lamp cleaner grass below.
In late summer until the onset of winter, we are fascinated by the lamp cleaner grass with its bushy, soft spikes of flowers.
Worth knowing about the lamp cleaner grass
The ornamental grass with the botanical name Pennisetum alopecuroides is a rarity with us, although it has a high decorative value for the garden and balcony. Pennisetum grass is native to East Asia and Australia, where it grows naturally on sunny plains. The attractive grass came to Europe in the second half of the 20th century. Here in Germany it is also known as feather bristle grass. This name is due to the brush-like inflorescences of the ornamental grass. Pennisetum grass is a hardy and hardy perennial. It forms magnificent, overhanging foliage in April each year. This makes the ornamental grass very eye-catching. But it gets even more beautiful in late summer when its magnificent spikes of flowers appear. These can be white, pink or brown in colour. The so-called black lamp cleaner grass with its dark, almost black spikes is very attractive. All types of feather bristle grasses grow up to 150 cm high and make a great accent outside.
Pennisetum grass in all its bloom
The pink flower spikes are real eye-catchers in the garden.
Important care tips for lamp cleaner grass
Before we start with the most important care tips for this attractive ornamental grass, we want to emphasize the following again. The feather bristle grass can not only decorate your garden and serve as an eye-catcher outside. It also looks beautiful in a tub and also has a high decorative value on the balcony or terrace. But if you want to plant it in a tub or pot, then we advise you to take a larger planter. For example with at least 20 l volume. There are also some dwarf forms of this ornamental grass that also feel good in smaller containers on the patio or balcony.
Otherwise, you should follow the following maintenance tips:
The attractive ornamental grass also cuts a fine figure in a large pot.
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1) location, time of planting
Pennisetum grass likes sunny places, that’s where it feels most comfortable. Its location must also be well protected, for example next to a wall or house wall. There the decorative plant thrives wonderfully and presents us with its narrow green leaves and beautiful flower spikes for months. The soil needs to be well-drained, with a neutral to acidic pH and adequate nutrients. All we can say is that feather bristlegrass could make a great addition to any rock garden.
If you want to replant the ornamental grass, do so in spring. The best time for planting is when outside temperatures are still below 15 degrees C and the soil has adequate moisture. The plant forms new roots by summer and shows beautiful spikes of flowers in late summer. If you want to plant the grass in a bucket or pot, spring is again the best time to do so.
The decorative grass feels most comfortable in a sunny spot in the garden.
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2) Water and fertilize
The lamp cleaning grass needs to be watered regularly from April to September. However, avoid soil wetness and prolonged dry periods. Although the Penninsetum is a fairly robust and easy-care plant, it needs enough water, up to 5 liters per plant on hot summer days. If the ornamental grass is not watered enough, it gets yellow tips on the stalk. This is a sign for all garden lovers to water this decorative plant more often.
Whether in a bucket or garden bed, the ornamental grass needs to be fertilized once every two to three months. Use an organic garden fertilizer that supports the growth of the decorative plant and intensifies flowering. For potted fountain grass, it is better to use a liquid fertilizer for balcony plants.
In the pot you can combine the lamp cleaner grass with sedum.
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Overwinter, multiply, cut
The ornamental grass is hardy and can be left outside all year round. In winter it likes temperatures between 5 and 10 degrees C, enough light and soil moisture. It is better not to water the popular ornamental grass in the cold months, because too much water could lead to root damage and rot. If you keep fountain pennise in a pot or tub, you can move it to the conservatory or other suitable winter quarters with other potted plants before the first frost. In the spring, the plants come back outside.
The ornamental grass is a hardy plant.
However, annual lamp cleaner grass must not overwinter outside.
Finally, we want to give you two extra tips. On the one hand, the lamp cleaner grass can be propagated by division. Spring is the right time for this.
The last care tip only applies to older plants. These require pruning in the spring, just before they sprout. Cut the ornamental grass about a hand’s breadth above the ground. Then wait for a lush green in the next few weeks! The attractive spikes of flowers also come in August!
Follow our care tips and you will successfully care for this rarity in your own garden.
Lush greenery and spike-like flowers.
This is what the flowers of the ornamental grass look like at the end of September.
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