Have you ever grown ornamental grasses before? These are different from your typical lawn grasses. Ornamental varieties are much taller, with interesting features and colours that make every variety uniquely beautiful. There are plenty of reasons you should consider adding them to your landscape, and so many incredible cultivars we can grow as perennials in Port Carling and Bala!

Here’s Why You Should Add Ornamental Grasses to Your Landscape

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Ornamental grasses often get overlooked in place of flowers for garden design, but they have so much to offer! In the landscape, ornamental grasses bring movement, texture, dimension, and colour. We love the way their breezy foliage dances in the wind. Not to mention, many varieties can be left intact through winter, adding visual interest to the snow-covered landscape.

Many ornamental grasses have tufted, feathery blooms that emerge in summer or fall. We love adding a few cuttings into autumn bouquets! Their foliage often changes colour once the temperature cools, complementing the beautiful autumn scenery. Once established, they’re typically drought-tolerant, making them a terrific addition to eco-friendly gardens.

Ornamental grasses can be grown in garden beds, as borders, as statement plants throughout the landscape, or even in containers! They’re popular for mixed container designs because their tall, wispy nature adds height and textural contrast, balancing out mounded filler plants and trailing vines.

Popular Types of Ornamental Grasses for Zones 4 & 5

There’s no shortage of options if you’re looking for perennial ornamental grasses that can withstand our chilly Ontario winters. They tend to fall into two categories: cool-season and warm-season varieties.

Cool-season grasses emerge as soon as temperatures warm up in the spring and typically bloom in early summer. After blooming, they often go dormant in the hottest summer months but will often perk back up in autumn for a second flush of growth once the temperatures cool.

Port Carling and Bala Garden Centres-Ontario-Ornamental Grasses For The Landscape-blue fescue grass
Some of our favourite cool-season ornamental grasses for Port Carling and Bala include:

  • Blue Fescue: A round, clumping dwarf variety with icy blue foliage, great for borders and container planting. Its perfectly spherical shape brings a whimsical feel to the landscape.
  • Blue Oat Grass: Similar in colour and shape to blue fescue, only taller! We love using it as a statement plant for the garden.

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  • Feather Reed Grass: An early-season showstopper that reaches 4–5 feet. Depending on your chosen variety, it may be cream-coloured or rich purple. The “Karl Foerster” variety is an all-time favourite!
  • Tufted Hair Grass: A popular ornamental grass for full sun or partial shade, reaching 3–4 feet at maturity. We particularly love variegated varieties like “Northern Lights”—the multicoloured blades add plenty of dimension and visual interest.

Warm-season varieties are slow to start in spring, but once the summer heat sets in, their growth rapidly increases, blooming through late summer and fall.

Try planting any of these warm-season grasses in Port Carling and Bala:

  • Miscanthus: Reaching between 3–8 feet tall, this showy ornamental grass has wispy blooms like ostrich feathers! “Zebrinus” is a popular variety, loved for its distinctive zebra stripes.
  • Pennisetum: A smaller dwarf variety with cute tufts like kitten tails. “Burgundy Bunny” features deep red variegation.

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  • Switchgrass: Depending on your chosen variety, switchgrass can reach anywhere from 2–5 feet tall. It has an upright growth habit—perfect for smaller spaces. The “Shenandoah” variety has striking red tips throughout its foliage.
  • Little Bluestem: Pretty blue-green foliage transitions to vivid rusty red in autumn. The seeds scatter from the wind and germinate easily, so we recommend removing the seed heads before they mature to prevent them from spreading throughout the landscape.

Discover even more colourful, breezy ornamental grasses for sale by visiting our garden centres in Port Carling and Bala, Ontario! Don’t hesitate to ask us any questions about caring for your new landscape plants in their first year—we always want to see your gardens succeed!