Miscanthus sinensis, how to grow Chinese reed

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Linear leaves rise in an imposing bundle 5 to 6½ feet in all directions, crowned by silver panicles that turn violet brown as they mature: this is Chinese reed (Miscanthus sinensis), a giant grass for back-of-border volume, pondside planting and windbreak hedges. Give it sun and rich, moist soil, and the autumn colours and winter silhouette repay you.

This lazy gardener’s plant suits rustic style gardens, minimalist contemporary gardens, and Zen gardens all very well.

A sturdy plant, easy to live with

• All in all, Miscanthus is pretty accommodating, though it prefers rich and moist soils. It handles occasional dryness and ordinary, dry, or heavy soils without a hitch. These factors, however, affect its fall colors and the persistence of its stalks and foliage in winter. Plant it in the sun in a large but well-drained hole.
• It has very few enemies except for the rabbit in large plantations and for wireworm, a soil worm that gnaws at roots in case of heavy infestation.

Miscanthus maintenance

• Just avoid trimming Miscanthus canes at the start of winter, or it might not grow back. Cut dried clumps back to 6 inches from the ground at the end of winter. This is when nitrogen in the canes migrates to the rhizomes for spring regrowth. It’s only at the end of winter that Miscanthus loses its dry foliage, forming a welcome mulch to promote regrowth and keep the soil cool.
• Fertilize in spring by raking the shredded foliage back around the base of the plant, forming a layer of compost 4 inches deep (10 cm).

Multiple uses in the garden

• Loving fresh soils, you can plant Miscanthus near a pond or to give volume by a basin.
• It also works well in the background of flower beds with landscape roses, asters, etc.
• In fresh soil, it forms a lovely pairing in a modern garden with ferns or dwarf bamboos.
• You can also use it to form wind-breaking, privacy hedges, which are also interesting for the wildlife that takes refuge in them.

A family portrait

The home ground of this giant grass is Africa and South Asia (surprisingly, given its common name). It thrives in marshes and also on drained slopes and hillside flanks. It even has the nickname “Elephant Grass”, which it shares with some types of bana grass.

The linear foliage of the Miscanthus sinensis forms an imposing bundle, 5 to 6½ feet (1.50 to 2m) in all directions, crowned by silver panicles turning violet brown when mature. In autumn, the green foliage shifts to yellow, orange, red, or brown tones depending on the cultivar. Its well-defined silhouette, even in winter as its leaves and inflorescences dry out, also adds appeal.

Given its success, numerous cultivars have sprung up, including:

• Purple flowering forms like ‘Ferner Osten’ (3 – 5 feet or 1 – 1.5 m)*,

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  • Fine foliage forms like ‘Rotsilber’ with late flowering, standing just above a wide, dark green foliage marked by a silver central rib.
  • ‘Silberfeder’ enchants with its silver pink panicles blooming at the end of slim, upright stems reaching up to 8 feet (2.40m).
  • Variegated foliage appear that triggered renewed interest, like ‘Variegatus’ with cream white leaves streaked with pale green, ‘Zebrinus’, shown at the bottom of this post, has with yellow transverse variegations (5 – 6 feet or 1.50 – 1.80m)*.
  • ‘Gracillimus’ forms a very beautiful clump, 4 feet high (1.20m), with fine, arching foliage that turns brown in the fall, but it blooms little.
  • ‘Morning Light’ (3 – 4 feet or 1 – 1.20m)* has a similar appearance with silvery foliage and loose flowering in September.

  *The first number indicates the height of the foliage, the second, that of the flowering.

  Varieties for small gardens or pot cultivation

  Facing space constraints, forms of small dimensions have been selected:

  • ‘Kleine Fontaine’ (3 – 4 feet or 1 – 1.20m) is one of the most floriferous, with spikes from July and a resurgence until September.
  • ‘Yaku Jima’ is a dwarf form (2½ feet or 80cm) that unfurls its panicles well above the foliage from July. This one takes on caramel tones in the fall.

Which Miscanthus sinensis cultivar to choose

The cultivars differ mainly in height, in when and how they flower, and in what the foliage does. Use this table to match a clump to the space you have.

Small gardens and pots are best served by the dwarf forms, while ‘Silberfeder’ suits a screen or a back-of-border anchor.

Elephant grass, plant of the future?

Miscanthus x giganteus, a sterile form, is emerging as a plant of the future. Think biomass for methane production, biofuel, particle boards, insulation, PVC substitutes, and so on. Harvest its dry canes at the end of winter and you’ve got yourself some firewood. It releases less carbon dioxide when burned than wood. And it packs more heat than a wood chip. Talk about hot stuff!

• Miscanthus × giganteus is a triploid that is effectively sterile and sets no viable seed, so it is propagated vegetatively — by rhizome division, stem or node cuttings, and tissue culture — and does not spread by self-seeding.
• Give Miscanthus × giganteus — one of several grasses sold as “elephant grass” — plenty of room: its canes rise well above head height, and in northern-hemisphere gardens the clump casts shade onto its northern side.
• Keep the ground around newly planted bearded iris rhizomes free of weeds until the clump fills in, since young plants establish slowly and are easily crowded out by grass and perennial weeds.
• Miscanthus canes leave more ash and contain more silica and chlorine than logs, so burn them in an appliance that tolerates it and clean the flue and grate more often than with wood.