Leymus ‘Canyon Prince’

Sesleria autumnalis is a meadow grass reaching twelve to eighteen inches with light green foliage. Flowers appear in the spring and fade gracefully throughout the summer.  It tolerates a wide range of conditions.  Sesleria caerulea is low growing to eight inches tall,  The leaves are green on the bottom, silver on top and slightly twisted so that both colors are visible. Flowers are inconspicuous.

Miscanthus transmorrisonensis is a bold, very green grass with striking flowers in late summer. The blades reach three to four feet with flowers reaching five feet. If removing all the spent flowers becomes too overwhelming to tackle, the plant can be cut back to the ground.

Carex tenuiculmis is a handsome, brownish red grass.  It grows two to three feet tall in full sun and needs only minimal water.  Carex testacea is another colorful grass that has very bright orange blades when planted in full sun.  It stays attractive throughout the year and likewise requires only minimal water once established.

Helictotrichon sempervirens (blue oat grass) is a silvery grass growing about eighteen inches with an upright habit.  It looks its best with some afternoon shade in the North County and requires average water.

Carex glauca ‘Blue Zinger’ is a lovely, low growing ground cover with slender blue green blades. It does best in full sun and is hardy to zero degrees.

Bamboo is really a giant grass, hence its inclusion in the grass category.  There are two main types of bamboo – clumping and running.  Clumping varieties will increase gradually and not take over the universe.  Bambusa and most Fargesia will do well in this area.  Running bamboos can become very invasive if allowed to do so, but…