A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2004 pompas grass questions

Anyone know anything about Pompas Grass?? Is it a wise thing to plant as a filler? My Mother in law cleaned out a huge area of raspberry bushes and would like to plant that. Does anyone have any experience with it? The area gets morning sun and then shade for pretty much the rest of the day. The soil is clay.

Pampas grass is a fine, fine spreading plant that can grow and multiply under many conditions. I have it in my clay soil and it's fine. I would not put it in a flower bed, as it can get use up a lot of space quickly.

Leave it up during the cold months as winter interest, but be sure to cut it down to about four inches tall in late winter/early spring, so that sunshine can fall on the new growth. otherwise, it'll develop a hollow place in the center, which can collapse and ruin the billowing pillar effect.

my aunt gave me a pompusgrass 3 years ago it was huge! i seperated it into 3 plants . but i didnt know you were to cut it down in spring.now i have 3 verrrry huge pompusgrasses that have hollow centers.so now i get to dig em all up,seperate em & plant em again!its a very hard job.but ive been wanting a forth one anyway!!!maybe even a fifth!!also when you cut em down, arange em in a vase.it looks realy nice! good luck with yours!

Yeah, that crazy pompass grass! Can't live with it, can't live without it!
I got a little of mine separated this year, but the BIG one will have to wait until next year now. I tried to at least get a little off of it. Wasn't gonna happen. I broke the shovel. Got a maddock and started hacking at it and didn't put a DENT in it. Guess we'll have to wait til next spring and dig it up with the backhoe.

my shovels now messed all up too! i dug way under the roots. then took a small claw & picked away the dirt til i got enough of the root to ripe off there is no way i can dig the hole thing up so im doing a little at a time!im also thinking the other two may have to wait till next year! i just keep telling myself the end results are well worth it!!

My maiden grass is sometimes impossible to divide also. It's easier if you catch it after a significant rainfall or water the heck out of it.

terry ive tried watering mine down, i got a mud pie i use to dream about making when i was a kid!! my pampas grass is 4 foot by 4 foot round.the watering way has always worked best for me when dividing any of my plants, but this grass is being very stubrin. im about ready to pull it out with my truck! or get out the chainsaw!!!

You might have to use a truck. (If you can just get a chain around the root ball). My maiden grass was only 2 1/2 feet across and it was a royal pain to get it out of the ground!

The former editor of Organic Gardening Magazine, Mike McGrath once told how he kept an old chain saw to use to cut roots of plants he was trying to dig up.

My husband hacked through ours with a hatchet to divide them some years ago. It took us both to lift out the pieces. :rolleyes:

got half my pampas grass out!!!

gardener buddies I have been trying to grow pampas grass the white kind from seeds that other gardeners sent to me and none of them grew for me? What am I doing wrong here! I wanted the white kind of pampas grass and nothing!!!

i have white! but ive never tried starting them from seeds. always used roots. if ya like i could send ya some roots. ill have to put a warning lable on the box; WARNING THESE ROOTS CAN CAUSE A SANE PERSON TO GO CRAZY . just let me know were to send em. sibyl

Semi-dumb question .....

Is Pompas Grass safe to feed to rabbits, geese and ducks?

I like to have plants in the yard that can be "eaten" by both domestic and wild animals - and since I'm planning on putting the Pompas in - would like to know if it is edible.

Been trying to find out - do not see it listed anywhere as poisonous - but neither do I see it listed as something that can be fed. Asking at the nursery - no luck. In one case "oh yes, if it grows in the yard you can feed it to them." I replied - "can you feed lettuce to rabbits?" "Definitely, they'll love lettuce." Uh huh - - they'll love it until they die because of eating it. (Not said - but thought - I was a bit more gentle in my actual response - - but then I used to think feed lettuce and had done so until I started teaching rabbits for 4-H and had to research.)

Thanks

Jon

Well it seems you all garden in areas where the weather keeps Papas Grass under control... here in California it is a noxious weed it self seeds readily as well as spread by roots. It has naturlized and taken over large areas particullary along the coast. It is such a problem here that I can not see any beauty in that plant. soooooooooooooo everyone be careful! happy gardening.

NO BEAUITY IN POMPASS GRASS? ???
did i read that right? or have i been staring at this screen to long

jon
dont know if there harmful, but mabe the game commision does??

You guys are so funny. I just got three different types of pompas grass and I am so excited about planting them. Do you think it is wise that I plant flock in between the pompas grass or do you think that would take away from their beauty? The flock is the tall kind with the really pretty flowers of fuscia, purple and white. I have striped flock that was given to me. I am also planting them next to my house. Is that a good idea considering how hard they are to move? Thank you for your help.

I love pompas grass. I planted some small ones, one year, but they didn't make it. Not sure why. I haven't tried it since then, but plan on it again one day. I think I'll buy some large ones...maybe I won't kill them (my other ones were really small).