Purple Fountain Grass in Tennessee

[Ima Googler]

Hi everybody!

I'm new to this group and have a quick question. I planted a nice mound of Purple Fountain Grass last year and am wondering what the chances are of it coming back this year. Do they last through a Tennessee mild winter?

Right now it looks like a bundle of dried hay. I know that there is probably no definitive answer because it all depends on planting location and temps, so i guess my actual question is this. How soon will I see new growth if it is going to come back this season? I don't want to trash it if its still got life left in it.

Thanks! kim Zone 6

[Travis]

Google is your friend.

[Newt]

Hi Kim,

It's rated hardy to zone 9, so I'd say it's a goner if you are in zon

1. It would be an annual in your zone. You may get lucky and fin some of the seed heads have sprouted new plants.

-- Newt

[Ima Googler]

Thanks for the reply! I hope I get lucky and find some new plants, but I suppose I'll go ahead and clean up its mess and not expect anything. :)

[escape]

I live in Zone 8b and mine sometimes returns, sometimes not. So, I'd say you don't have a good chance if the soil temps were below 40 for any length of time.

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[Jenn Vanderslice]

Hi Victoria,

Just thought I'd let you know that the purple fountain grass seeds that you sent me sprouted yesterday. After reading how invasive it is in the south, I talked with another Master Gardener that had grown it. She grew it in a container and lost it over winter here in zone 6-7 (they can't make up their minds on our zone!). Guess I won't have to worry about it being invasive to my garden...but I will have to remember to collect seeds at the end of the season.

Thanks aga> I live in Zone 8b and mine sometimes returns, sometimes not. So, I'd say you

[Newt]

Newt Wrote:

Ima, I'm posting from a forum and not usenet, so I don't know if I'v cut and pasted this correctly. Hope so. Anyway, I should have state that the seed heads would drop the seeds on the ground for new plant to sprout, but you probably already know that. Anyway, you could jus cut the stalks near or to the ground for now and wait until plants i your garden begin to sprout before you dig it up and disturb the soi around it to look for new sprouts. New

-- Newt

[dps]

I've had it come up the next year in MA zone 5/6 after a moderate winter. Not reliably enough to call it perennial here, but in TN, maybe?

Trim some of it back and see if there's some green stuff down in the middle of the hay. I'm not familiar with TN growing seasons, but up here it started showing green in early spring. Not the first stuff up, but not too long after mud season.

Ima Googler wrote:

[escape]

Good, but they aren't purple fountain grass! They are Pennisetum setaceum, but not 'Rubrum.' These are exactly like the purple, only the plumes are white and foliage green. They reseed readily and I have a farm here of them!

Mine reseeds everywhere. It is also root hardy in my USDA Zone 8b, but I'm not sure how far north it will be hardy.

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[Jenn Vanderslice]

Thanks again. I went back and searched the ever expanding internet again.

seem to have the reoccurring problem of mounds of mis-information everywhere. Took me a long time to realize that there is a HUGE difference between brugmansia and datura. According to many websites, magazine articles and books....they're the same plant. ;-)

[escape]

Okay, brugmansia and datura are not hugely different. They are both in the solanacea family of plants and both have very similar flower parts. They were only taxonomically changed about 12 years ago, or so. Brugmansia and datura both need similar conditions.

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