February Perennial of the Month-HUSH PUPPY Fountain Grass

The longer you garden, the more “problem plants” you encounter. This is, unfortunately, how most budding gardeners learn. We see a plant that we MUST HAVE, and before we know it, it becomes a garden nightmare on one level or another. Problem plants can also come into your garden by other gardeners with the best intentions. Back in the day when I was … let’s say,” young and stupid” as far as plants were concerned, I was an eager new homeowner excited about finally starting the garden of my dreams in our new home. There is no faster way to learn who the other Plant-Geeks are in your neighborhood than to start planting flowers in your front yard.  These Plant-Geeks are willing to divide and share their plants since they remember the days when they too, were eager, new gardeners with no money to feed the plant-starved landscapes they tend. And so, they bring you their gifts of hostas, ferns, and, unfortunately, sometimes an invasive exotic that, as a newbie, you have no clue of its aggressive nature until it is too late.

I’ve learned a few “red flags” to help avoid this problem, one of them being If someone “has plenty” of one type of plant…it could mean they have a “problem plant” that gets out of control. It always comes back to RESEARCH! Find the plant’s BOTANICAL name and look it up on reliable sites. Different degrees of “Problem Plants” exist, from slightly annoying to full-blown red-level invasive list culprits.

One of my current problem plants is a beautiful fountain grass given to me by a very dear Plant-Geek friend who has recently passed. She didn’t know the botanical name because another Plant-Geek divided and gave one to her. It was beautiful, and my friend was so excited about giving it to me. How could I say “no?”

I now know the grass as Pennisetum alopecuroides. Commonly known as fountain grass or Chinese fountain grass, P. alopecuroides can be a prolific reseeder if conditions are right-full to part sun and moist soils. It’s excellent for boggy areas and rain gardens, giving them winter interest when other perennials are dormant or brown and slimy. What’s the answer to the reseeding problem then? USE A STERILE CULTIVAR. Sterile cultivars like Hush Puppy or Cayenne do not reseed and become problem plants like the straight species.

Hush Puppy has the slightest tint of pink in the flower heads, which are showiest from late summer through winter. It grows 3′ tall with a graceful, rounded habit. Even though it prefers moist soil, it will tolerate drought. Like most ornamental grasses, a buzz cut in late winter/early spring is required to keep it looking good. The photos in this post were taken in the Kemper Bird Garden at Missouri Botanical Garden where you can see a mature planting of Hush Puppy firsthand.

There are many fountain grass cultivars out there, so I repeat-research is key. Check info for sterile flowers and hardiness since many of the much-coveted purple fountain grasses are not hardy in St. Louis.

What I like about this plant;

-Beautiful, long-lasting flower heads.

-Perfect, rounded habit.

-Tolerates moist soil and drought.

-Great for rain gardens or erosion control as well as ornamental beds.

-Great winter interest when other perennials are dormant or unsightly.

What’s not so great;

-Does require an annual buzz cut in late winter/early spring before new foliage emerges.

-Unless you have a sterile cultivar, it can reseed and become a nuisance.

Comments or questions? Email Garden-Lou at gardenloustl@gmail.com

Words and photos by Jo Batzer

© Jo Batzer, garden-lou.com-2025, All rights reserved.