Released July 7, 2010
BATON ROUGE, La. – We all are familiar with low-growing, running grasses like St. Augustine and centipede used to cover lawn areas, and in most gardeners’ minds, all other grasses are simply weeds. Ornamental grasses, however, are an often-overlooked group of herbaceous perennials that thrive in Louisiana and will grow beautifully with minimal effort.
The term ornamental grass is applied to grasses and grass-like plants that are used chiefly for their beauty. They are a large and complex group of plants with a wide range of growth habits and culture. In a strict sense, true grasses are members of the Poaceae or grass family. Many other plants that we think of as grasses are actually sedges and rushes, which belong to different families altogether. They, along with the true grasses, comprise the bulk of the plants we call ornamental grasses.
--continued on LSU AgCenter news
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