Karl

I have a fondness for Calamogrostis x acutiflora ‘Karl Foerster.’ I first saw it growing in a single clump in a garden outside of Philadelphia, and was immediately struck by its form and color. It is a shock of vertical stems, flowers in the spring narrowing to biscuit colored (sterile) seed heads that last throughout the summer. Although these are a bit tattered by the end of fall, they last throughout the winter as well. Starkly upright, the stems bend and twist in the wind making for a plant of movement and grace despite tendencies toward formal rigidity. It is oh so very common in landscapes now, a trite statement even, used in commercial planting schemes that are frequently in soldierly rows that I find extraordinarily unimaginative. But I still find it beautiful.

There are other upright grasses, most notably Panicum virgatum ‘Heavy Metal’ with blue leaves and reddish fireworks of flowers in the late summer, or Panicum virgatum ‘Strictum.’ I love these as well, having grown ‘Heavy Metal’ in my garden. But in the late winter/ early spring, when the soul is winter starved, the Panicums creep sluggishly out of the ground while Karl bursts forward with the exuberance and gladness that I feel in my heart when the warm days come. Native Indian Grass (Sorghastrum nutans) and Little Bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium) are quite upright as well, with the addition of a wonderful fall color. For a more relaxed stance there are grasses like the linear patterns of Deergrass (Muhlenbergia rigens) and the fluffy late summer Sporobolus airoides. S. airodes in particular should be one of the most used plants in this area instead of the least since some forms are quite comparable to Karl and the species needs very little water. But all of these grasses don’t get going until summer is well underway. That’s not to say that I don’t appreciate these grasses. I love them too, especially in the fall, but it is now spring, and in the spring, Karl fills the bill.

There are of course other cool season grasses that are fireworks in the spring, notably the Festucas and Helicotrichon. These are beautiful too, but my garden doesn’t have a place for them. I keep searching for a spot or two, though. I’m particularly charmed but the cute Festuca ‘Boulder Blue’ and the graceful awns of the Helicotrichon. These require a bit of water. I also love the native Stipa neomexicana (or is it the very near relative Stipa comata which looks identical to me – could they be the same?), with its six-inch (or more) awns that catch the low light of morning or late afternoon. It needs much less water than Karl. Fortunately I don’t have a dog, or I wouldn’t appreciate this grass as much, called “Needle and Thread Grass” for a reason. It’s a much better plant than the weedy Mexican Feather Grass (Nasella tenuissima) which although friendlier to dogs, looks like a matted dog coat once the show of a couple weeks is over. Stipa neomexicana more elegantly drops its awns, leaving upright stems with papery bracts of light tan. Although less dramatic than the awns, they are still attractive.

Unfortunately, they don’t have quite the wind-catching ability of the faded flowers of Karl. The Molinas have a grace that goes beyond what Karl is capable of, with evocative names like ‘Sky Racer’ and ‘Wubdsouek; I saw a planting during my trip to Oregon, and was completely entranced. I haven’t seen them here, and I haven’t tried them myself. It’s unlikely that I will, since these grasses are said to require abundant water, being native to bogs.

So I return to Calamogrostis x acutiflora ‘Karl Foerster’, this hybrid between European species Calamagrostis epigejos and C. arundinacea. But I might try C. brachytricha.