Plants
Feather Grass
Stipa · Poaceae
Feather grass is the finest of all common ornamental grasses: hair-thin blades and silky awns that start moving at the slightest breeze. In prairie borders, gravel gardens and containers it brings a lightness no flowering plant can replace. We buy our plants in compact nursery quality directly at the Veiling Rhein-Maas.
- Light
- Full sun — as a steppe grass it needs light and warmth.
- Watering
- Little; water only in longer dry spells and avoid winter wet at all costs.
- Care level
- Medium
- Botanical
- Stipa
The bestseller is Mexican feather grass, botanically Stipa tenuissima (now often Nassella tenuissima), with blond, softly spilling clumps. Alongside it stand the European feather grass Stipa pennata with long, silkily haired awns, and giant feather grass Stipa gigantea, whose oat-like panicles rise to two metres.
All Stipa species are children of the steppe: they want full sun, warmth and lean, very free-draining soil. The classic mistake is a spot that is too well-meant — in rich, moist garden soil the grass rots in winter or flops apart heavy and untidy.
Mexican feather grass is also only moderately hardy and short-lived in harsh spots. It makes up for this by self-seeding generously; leave the seedlings and you effectively keep the stand forever. In mild city locations like Düsseldorf it usually comes through winter well.
As a design element feather grass is the perfect soft-focus lens: it plays around lavender, coneflowers and globe thistles, softens strict topiary and catches low light like hardly any other plant. In a container a single clump is enough to bring movement to a planting.
The silky panicles are popular in floristry too — fresh in summer bouquets and dried in everlasting work. A practical note for pet households: the awns of some species carry barbs and can lodge in the fur or ears of dogs. The grass is not poisonous, but keep an eye on it around boisterous animals.
Is Feather Grass toxic to children and pets?
- Children
- Non-toxic
- Cats
- Mildly irritating
- Dogs
- Mildly irritating
Feather grass is chemically non-toxic to cats, dogs and children. However, the awned seeds of some species carry barbs and, much like foxtail grasses, can lodge in pets' fur, paws, ears or nose — which is why, as a precaution, we do not class it as entirely harmless for animals.
Typical symptoms: With lodged awns: head shaking, sneezing, paw licking, irritated skin or ears — a vet should then remove the awn.
In an emergency:call the German poison control centre in Bonn on +49 228 19240 (24/7) — for pets, contact an emergency vet directly. This information does not replace medical or veterinary advice.
Overview: toxic & non-toxic plants for cats, dogs and children
Care
- 01Choose a full-sun, warm and preferably breezy spot.
- 02Use a lean, very free-draining substrate — work grit into heavy soil.
- 03Water only moderately and hardly feed at all; wet is the biggest enemy.
- 04Do not cut back; instead comb the old blades out with your fingers in spring.
- 05Allow self-seeding to continually replace short-lived clumps.
- 06Keep container plants dry over winter and protect them from persistent rain.
Frequently asked
- Is feather grass winter-hardy?
- Native Stipa pennata and giant feather grass are reliably hardy. The popular Mexican feather grass Stipa tenuissima tolerates frost only moderately and suffers above all from winter wet; in mild spots on free-draining soil it survives most winters, and secures itself through self-seeding anyway.
- Do you cut feather grass back?
- No, a cutback does this fine grass no good. Instead, comb the dead blades out of the clump with your fingers or a coarse comb in spring. That preserves the natural, soft shape.
- Why is my feather grass flopping apart?
- Usually the soil is too rich or too moist. In nutrient-rich earth this steppe grass grows soft and loses its posture. Lean soil, full sun and no feeding keep the clump compact and upright.
- Is feather grass dangerous for dogs?
- It is not poisonous. The awned seeds, however, can lodge like little darts in fur, paws and ears and migrate there. After a summer walk through stands of grass a quick check of paws and ears is worthwhile; lodged awns are removed by the vet.