Pennisetum – Graceful Grasses^® Vertigo

This variety is especially dramatic in clusters, mass plantings, or along slopes. A favorite for fresh or dried arrangements. Pest and disease-free.

Features

This variety is especially dramatic in clusters, mass plantings, or along slopes. A favorite for fresh or dried arrangements. Pest and disease-free.

Award Winner

Dead-Heading Not Necessary

Grass

Heat Tolerant

Foliage Interest

Maintenance Notes

In almost all areas it will be an annual grass. Once the grass turns brown in the fall you can cut it back to the ground whenever you would like.

Vertigo is a warm-season grass. Where temperatures get colder than 15 degrees F, the plants should be treated as annuals. Once the grass turns brown it can either be removed immediately or removed in the spring. It should not be expected to live through the winter and begin growing again in the spring.

In areas where winter temperatures remain above 15 degrees it should be considered a perennial and the following information should be useful. Warm-season grasses won't start growing until mid to late spring or even early summer. Their major growth and flowering happens when the weather is hot. They will usually turn shades of brown for the winter.

Cut back warm season grasses in fall or by mid to late spring. Warm season grasses turn shades of brown as the weather turns colder. Once your warm season grasses turn brown you can trim them back at almost any time. If you like to tidy your garden in fall or if you live in an area where fire can be problematic trim warm season grasses so they are just a few inches tall.

If you live in an area where fire generally isn't a problem you can leave the dried grasses and seed heads in your garden for winter interest. Snow or ice encrusted ornamental grasses can be quite beautiful.

If you leave the trimming until spring try to make sure to cut them back to the ground (you can leave a couple of inches) by late spring, before new growth begins.

Not all ornamental grasses look good through the winter, trim back those that don't look good in the fall.

Divide warm season grasses anytime spring through mid-summer. All ornamental grasses should be divided when they are actively growing but not while they are flowering. If the plants are dormant when they are transplanted they won't establish a good root system. Warm season grasses generally start growing in late spring or early summer and have their active growth period during the heat of the summer. Warm season grasses will tend to bloom in mid to late summer.

Uses Notes

This grass will beautify your garden all summer.

Maintenance Category Easy

Water Category Average

Bloom Time

Flower Form Container, Grass, Landscape

Soil Fertility Average Soil

pH B - pH 5.8 - 6.2

EC (2:1 Extraction Method) 0.6 - 0.9

Fertilization 100 - 150

Light Requirements High

Water Requirements Moderate to Moist

Rooting Out Temperature 65 - 72° Fahrenheit

Growing On Temperature 65 - 72° Fahrenheit

Holding Temperature 50 - 65° Fahrenheit

Planting and Timing Information

Spring to Fall Sales. Standard PPP.

Pinching and Growth Regulators

No pinching or growth regulators needed.

Pest and Disease Management

General pest and disease practices as listed in notes. Scout for mealy bugs and treat as needed, look carefully at the intersection of the leaf and the main stem because mealy bugs can hide in these areas.

Grower Tips

-Sharp drops in temperature can damage the foliage. Only move outside when temperatures will not fall below 50 degrees.

-When plants are first moved outside foliage can also be damaged by high winds. Plants should be protected until hardened off to windy conditions.

-Plants are not recommended for 4" or smaller pot