Bhg
  • Shop
  • News
  • Food
  • DIY
  • Garden
  • Renovating
  • Decorating
  • Health
  • TV
  • Hard to Find
Bhg
  • Shop
  • News
  • Food
  • DIY
  • Garden
  • Renovating
  • Decorating
  • Health
  • TV
  • Hard to Find
Subscribe
  1. Home
  2. Garden

Charlie's guide to ornamental grass

The unsung heroes of your garden. - by Charlie Albone
  • 31 Dec 2021

Tonight, Charlie's looking beyond the obvious heroes of your garden and giving an un-sung hero the spotlight for a change: grass. But it's not the grass you might think. Charlie's talking about ornamental grass. There are varieties for all types of locations and conditions, so whether you're in a hot and dry area or cool and rainy, there's an ornamental grass perfect for your garden. 

WATCH: Charlie Albone shows you how to use ornamental grass in your garden

If ever there was a quiet achiever in a well-designed garden, it is an ornamental grass. On a passing glance, it appears to be used as filler or as a backdrop to the more exuberant stars of your garden.

Ornamental grass
Sue Ferris

But ornamental grasses are more than a garden's backbone. They have a graceful and elegant beauty and, in being a subtle visual break in a bed of flowering plants, provide different shapes and textures, as well as contrast and softness.

Ornamental grass next to a pool

Plant miscanthus on the side of a path and you'll never be able to resist touching the feathery fronds as you walk past

Sue Ferris

They also have the unique ability among garden bed plants for their wispy leaf blades and flowering stalks to dance up a delight at the slightest of breezes. 

Ornamental grasses

Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum), miscanthus and pennisetum add another dimension to low-growing plants

Sue Ferris

Benefits of ornamental grasses

  • Their tall flower heads shimmer in the afternoon sun
  • They add drama in modern, minimalist gardens
  • They're ideal for dry, low-water gardens
  • They provide habitats and help suppress weeds
  • They're very low maintenance - just trim back in late winter
Charlie Albone planting ornamental grass

Charlie creates drama with ornamental grass

Sue Ferris

4 companion plants to ornamental grass

Cousin it

This is not a grass, it's a mini tree called Casuarina 'Cousin It'

Sue Ferris
Chinese fringe flower

A stunning feature of the Chinese fringe flower is foliage colour

Sue Ferris
Pink sedum

Add a soft explosion of pink sedum to take the edge off long lines

Sue Ferris
Echeveria

The blue-grey of echeveria adds colour and drama

Sue Ferris
  • Garden
  • TV
  • Backyard Ideas
  • Driveway Ideas
  • Front Garden Ideas
  • Landscape Design Ideas
Charlie Albone
Charlie Albone
Charlie has worked internationally and in Australia for the past 17 years, designing and building gardens that are timeless, inspiring and enjoyable to spend time in. In 2015 and 2016, he was awarded two Silver gilt medals for his own gardens at the world’s most prestigious flower show The Chelsea Flower Show.

Treat yourself to a subscription-Save up to 25%

Plus, your chance to win

Subscribe Now
Treat yourself to a subscription

Treat yourself to a subscription-Save up to 25%

Plus, your chance to win

Subscribe Now
Treat yourself to a subscription

Recommended to you

YOU’LL NEED A WEDGE TO HANG THAT DOOR
Watch 6:32

YOU’LL NEED A WEDGE TO HANG THAT DOOR

{headline}

{headline}

How to make an aquascape fish tank

How to make an aquascape fish tank

The power and science behind living green walls

The power and science behind living green walls

How to prevent a soggy lawn

How to prevent a soggy lawn

Charlie visits a quirky garden

Charlie visits a quirky garden

{headline}

{headline}

Charlie visits landscape designer Peter Shaw’s garden

Charlie visits landscape designer Peter Shaw’s garden

How to fix a trouble spot in your garden

How to fix a trouble spot in your garden

How to make multi-level corten steel garden beds

How to make multi-level corten steel garden beds

{headline}

{headline}

How to screen a rubbish bin

How to screen a rubbish bin

Charlie’s favourite purple plants

Charlie’s favourite purple plants

Charlie and Adam create the ultimate outdoor room

Charlie and Adam create the ultimate outdoor room

Charlie meets Ant Middleton

Charlie meets Ant Middleton

Charlie visits a clever inner-city garden in Sydney

Charlie visits a clever inner-city garden in Sydney

How to bottom-water your pot plants

How to bottom-water your pot plants

How to build a farm gate

How to build a farm gate

Bhg
  • About Us
  • Subscribe Today
  • Contact Us
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
Bhg Magazine Subscribe
  • About Us
  • Subscribe Today
  • Contact Us
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy Policy

Brands

  • All Recipes
  • BHG Shop
  • Girlfriend
  • Home Beautiful
  • New Idea
  • New Idea Food
  • Practical Parenting

Our Network

  • marie claire
  • Beauty Crew
  • Who
  • Women's Weekly Food
  • Bounty Parents
  • That’s Life
  • Perth Now
  • The West Australian
  • 7Plus
  • 7mate
  • 7NEWS
  • 7Sport
  • Sunrise
  • Starts at 60
  • Hard to Find
© 2022 Are Media PTY LTD
All products are independently selected, tested or recommended by our team of experts.If you buy something, we may earn an affiliate commission.
Get more from Better Homes and Gardens

Magazine Subscription Offer

Treat yourself to a subscription-Save up to 25%

Shop This Offer
Treat yourself to a subscription