Latin name: Arundo donax
Description: This is an enormous grass somewhat redolent of the more tropical sugar cane and the most dramatic grass you can grow in our temperate climate. It is a perennial, clump-forming plant with canes up to 3cm thick and 4m tall. The blue-green leaves are long and narrow up to 60cm long. There is also a beautifully variegated form, A. d. ‘Variegata’, with leaves striped in green and white, often flushed with pink on the new shoots which grows to about 2m. The variegated form needs some protection in the winter in colder areas.
Hardiness: Hardy and wind resistant, hence is excellent for coastal gardens, where it makes a good windbreak. The variegated form needs some winter protection
Height: Up to 4m a
Position: Full sun
Soil: Any moist well-drained, humus rich soil
Water: Prefers a moist soil hence best mulched well. I grown in dryer conditions it will be proportionately smaller
Usage: It can be planted as a specimen or placed at the back of a border to give height; it also makes a good wind break.
Thu, Apr 10, 2008
Architectural