Autumn stalwarts: ornamental grasses

Stipa gigantea in my garden this week.

Ornamental grasses go in and out of fashion. They aren’t to everyone’s taste, lending a loose, naturalistic look to the garden that to some people’s eye spells untidiness. But used in a considered way they can be fantastic assets, bringing colour and structure to the garden in autumn and winter, and even more importantly, movement. Use them in drifts or as I do, dotted around randomly as linking plants to contrast with and to take the intensity out of other herbaceous plants. There are so many ornamental grasses to choose from in different sizes and to suit different conditions that it can sometimes be bewildering. A good starting point is to visit the website of Knoll Gardens, a nursery specialising in grasses - or even better, visit them in Dorset to see the display garden where hundreds of grasses are planted in large mixed borders. Seeing them in situ like this is great as you can see exactly how how they grow and interact with other plants.