Upright clump of metallic blue-gray switch grass topped with airy, fine seed heads

Switch Grass 'Heavy Metal'

3 Gallon
$60.99
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Upright clump of metallic blue-gray switch grass topped with airy, fine seed heads
  • Upright clump of metallic blue-gray switch grass topped with airy, fine seed heads
  • Upright clump of metallic blue-gray switch grass topped with airy, fine seed heads
Switch Grass 'Heavy Metal'
Grass · Zones 4–9
Panicum virgatum

Switch Grass 'Heavy Metal'

$60.99
Size3 Gallon
The short version

A grass for full sun or part sun.

Native variety. Bees can get in.

Zones 4–9Full sun · Part sunLow waterNot pet-safe
Stock
In stockTracking the day it leaves
Promise
Arrives aliveOr we replace it. How
From Natorp's, Mason, Ohio Meet them
Spacing and size

2–3 ft apart; plant in groups of three or more for a real screen.

Full growing guide
The story

Blue steel, prairie roots.

Stiff, upright clumps of metallic blue-gray blades that don't flop, topped in late summer with an airy haze of seed heads. In fall the whole thing turns warm gold and stays standing well into winter.

Light

Full sun for the bluest color and stiffest stems. In part shade it gets greener and can lean.

Water

Water weekly the first summer. After that, only in a long drought.

Planting

Plant in spring or early fall, crown level with the soil. Clay is fine as long as it isn't waterlogged.

A native grass with real color that holds its shape from June to February.

The facts
Size4–5 ft tall, 2–3 ft wideShowLate summer plumes; foliage spring to winterLightFull sun, Part sunZones4–9WaterLow, let it dryGood forNative variety, Deer-resistant, DroughtPetsNot pet-safe; keep out of reach
Who it feeds
  • Caterpillars About 24 kinds of native butterflies and moths raise their caterpillars on Panicum, going by the median county in a nationwide study. Caterpillars are what songbirds feed their chicks. Source
Full growing guide: feeding, pruning, the year, troubleshooting →
Plays well with

Complete the planting.

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