Botanical Name: Panicum virgatum
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Common Name: Switch Grass  
Plant photo of: Panicum virgatum
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Water Saving Tip:

Replace turf with groundcovers, trees, and shrubs. If you have areas where no one uses the grass, patches that do not grow well, or a turf area too small to water without runoff, consider replacing the turf with water-efficient landscaping.

  • Anatomy

  • Culture

  • Design

Plant Type

Perennial, Grass

 

Height Range

3-6', 6-12'

 

Flower Color

Blue, Orange, Pink, Red

 

Flower Season

Summer, Fall

 

Leaf Color

Green, Blue Green

 

Bark Color

n/a

 

Fruit Color

n/a

 

Fruit Season

n/a

Information by: Stephanie Duer
Photographer: Susan Frommer
  • Description

  • Notes

Switch grass is a north American native and an original component of the Midwestern Plains. It is a warm-season (it goes dormant during the winter) clumping grass with an upright form, interesting flowers, showy fall color, and a great winter presence. It grows from 4 to 7 feet tall and about half as wide, though in time may spread wider. Airy, delicate flowers appear in mid-summer, hanging along an arching, wiry stem, and are pink to red to orange. Foliage turns yellow to orange in the fall, and the flowers turn a silvery white. there are now many cultivars to choice from, and they all make excellent and low-care additions to perennial or shrub borders, or in more naturally styled settings.