Best ornamental grass for an elegant and stylish garden

'Stipa tenuissima' or Mexican Feather Grass always features heavily in gardens at summer flower shows, after which sales go through the roof! A neat, compact grass with stiff, thin stems, a strong arching shape, and an open structure, it's almost transparent, rather than the dense effect of some other grasses. Also known as ponytails or angel hair, its wispy, pale leaves are topped with fluffy heads of silvery-green flowers from June to September.

Customer Review: "My grasses arrived well packaged and in good condition. I've bought from T&M before and would do so again."

'Hordeum jubatum' or Foxtail Barley is short-lived but it will self-seed to grow new plants. Give it a warm, sunny position and it'll reward you with delicate, pale pink, silvery flowers. Plant in drifts and the flowers will sway in the breeze creating attractive waves. Looks great in a gravel garden or at the front of a modern border.

Customer Review: "I'm so pleased with the germination rate of these seeds. I'm looking forward to seeing the squirrel tails to grow."

Grown for its stiff, architectural blue foliage, the Festuca Glauca (or Blue Fescue) is a useful evergreen grass for year-round interest. These low-growing hummocks of grey-blue, needle-thin leaves are evergreen, with pretty flower spikes in summer slowly fading to brown. Other than a comb-through in spring to remove any dead foliage, it needs zero attention from you. It has a particularly neat, clump-forming habit that remains nicely compact as it grows.

Customer Review: "Good, healthy plants that arrived in perfect condition. A little small at the moment but they look good at the front of the border and seemed to have settled in well."

With huge, graceful feathery heads of silky cream-white flowers, this majestic ornamental Pampas Grass has boomed in popularity over the past year both indoors and outdoors. Fully hardy, these make a striking feature for late summer and autumn and still look attractive in the winter frost. These come supplied in approx. 2-litre containers.

Customer Review: "Very pleased with this plant. Looks strong and healthy."

The upright blades of Japanese Blood Grass (or 'Imperata cylindrica Rubra') are green at the base and red at the tip, glowing like flickering flames when backlit by the sun. It's not terribly tough, so plant it in a sunny spot and keep it cosy with a layer of mulch in autumn. Or, grow it in a pot and pop it under cover in winter.

This Chasmanthium Latifolium originates from North America where it's also known as northern sea oats. It boasts masses of unusual flat flowers that add a sculptural edge to a modern plot, and the whole plant dries to a rich russet-brown colour in autumn. Give it a sunny spot and cut stems to ground level in early spring.

Customer Review: "Beautiful and very nice to see enjoyed growing from seed."

'Pennisetum alopecuroides' or Chinese Fountain Grass has long, arching, slender, green leaves and fluffy, brush-like, brown spikelets in summer that resemble a squirrel's tail. Decorative and low-maintenance, it can grow up to 150cm and thrives in the sun with fertile, well-drained garden soil. Growing in clumps, it's ideal for filling gaps in your borders.

Customer Review: "Looks lovely. Planted in my wildflower meadow (just sown)."

We can't get enough of this fluffy Pennisetum villosum with flowers of whitish-green that take on purple tints as they mature. This grass won't survive a chilly winter so keep it cosy with mulch or grow in a pot and bring it undercover in late autumn. Plant the wheat-like feathertop grass in a sunny, well-drained location. Their fluffy texture will soften surrounding planting schemes and they look particularly good when the sun catches them from behind.

Customer Review: "Lovely planted under pleached fruit trees adding winter interest."

'Eriophorum scheuchzeri' gets its common name (White Cotton Grass) because of the fluffy, white flowerheads that look like cotton wool balls floating among clumps of grassy foliage. Native to Alaska, Canada, Greenland, and Iceland, it's super hardy and can grow up to 30cm. It needs to be kept moist so would do well next to a garden pond, and you can expect to see the white flowerheads from June to September each year.

Planted in large drifts at the edge of a path or beneath trees, this slow-growing Hakonechloa macra 'Aureola' grass will bring movement to your garden with its tumbling cascades of striped yellow and green leaves. Plant in full sun, where the leaves can develop a reddish tint or part shade, and cut back to the base in spring.

Customer Review: "Really good size plants! I have planted them and can't wait for them to show their full potential."

Slender leaves sit atop towering stems, creating quite an impression. Plant the Stipa gigantea (golden oats) where it will catch the sun and its seedheads will shimmer like gold into winter. The leaves have sharp edges so wear gloves when handling and comb through in spring to remove dead foliage. Supplied in 3 x 9cm pots.

Customer Review: "This is a very impactful, very tall grass with amazing, tall, golden spears that shimmer in the sun. It has proved difficult, though, to keep them in shape. Some of the spears go off at an angle and look less attractive. If planted with other things of contrasting colour it can look fantastic. A real statement plant that we first got to know from seeing it in a National Trust garden."

'Lagurus ovatus' is so cute and looks exactly like its name describes: plump little balls on skinny stems that bob up and down in the breeze. Perfect for edging, beds, and tubs, these seeds can grow up to 20cm in height with delightful, touchable heads that flower from June to September. As its name describes, miniature rabbits' tails are ideal to use as an upper-storey in any cut flower bunch and container. It should be well-drained and in full sun.

Customer Review: "Second year of growing Sarah Raven bunny’s tails, great germination and lovely looking plants. Highly recommend."

Just look at these stripy leaves! This variegation is temperature-dependent so plant it in light shade. The green and cream foliage grows in an elegant fountain shape and in hot summers you'll also enjoy silky, coppery-pink flower spikes. Cut the Miscanthus Sinensis 'Zebrinus' down to the base in late winter.

Customer Review: "Looks great...... growing well. Lovely variegated grass."

Feeding plants for up to 6 months, removing the need for regular feeding, the Miracle-Gro All Purpose Continuous Release Plant Food will keep your ornamental grasses looking luscious and fabulous, no matter the time of year.

Customer Review: "Goo plant food. I put extra in my pots and hanging baskets, I use it every year when I start planting all my containers."

This vidaXL Bamboo Raised Bed Pots (Pack of 3) with nylon lining will be an ideal choice for your garden, patio or terrace. It will be an eye-catcher in your garden or on your terrace or patio. The planters are made of weather-resistant and waterproof bamboo, which is durable and stable for outdoor use year-round, perfect for ornamental grass.

Customer Review: "Planted my roses in the planters the first two big and medium are great for shrubs, small roses bushes. Miniature plants and bulbs etc the small one are good for bulbs too as they fit snuggly."

For planting, we recommend the Westland John Innes No 3 Mature Plant Compost, which nurtures and sustains plants for a longer life. It has been developed especially to help mature plants and shrubs, with a long-lasting and nutrient-rich formulation - perfect for ornamental grass of all sizes and species. It has a four-month feed for your plants.

Slow-release moisture control for pots, containers and hanging baskets, this Westland Water Saving/Retention Gel is great for summer use. When temperatures are hot and households go on holiday, this could come in clutch. It has the capacity to hold 400 times its own weight in water. Impressive. Water is absorbed and released as the plant needs it. Reduces water stress in plants and helps to retain flowers and fruit. And - one application lasts all season long.

Customer Review: "Used mixed in small quantities sparingly in the soil of pots worked well. I saved a lot of unnecessary watering. I'm not sure what the granules contain but it shows as a jelly form when mixed with soil and water."

The envii Activearth Organic Soil Conditioner Improver is for use in no-dig gardening, vegetable beds, flower beds and lawns. The unique formula includes a blend of minerals and nutrients that improve soil aeration, drainage and plant growth. The pellets break down over the course of 4-6 weeks delivering minerals and nutrients to the soil. These minerals act as a food source for both microbes and earthworms, encouraging them to your plot or lawn. This way, your blooming borders will promoted to grow. It's safe for pets and wildlife; it helps your garden look fabulous.

Customer Review: "I will definitely be buying more I’m on for my second one now and my plants and soil are so much healthier looking."

Add height and structure to the garden with this unique Sphere Planter with Stand from Waitrose Garden. Made from aluminium with a hammer-textured finish, the bowl sits on a sturdy tripod stand made from a lacquered metal rod. To bring out the best in this planter, fill it with ornamental grasses, trailing plants and herbs - spilling out the sides.

Make your garden modern and stylish for your garden, patio, decking or courtyard with this Beehive Planters, Pack of 3, with a pretty bronze effect, which will offer a focal point to your outdoor space. Manufactured from UV-stabilised polyurethane, your planters will be weather-resistant and maintenance-free. It's perfect for ornamental grass.

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