Gone With The Wind Prairie Dropseed
Sporobolus heterolepis 'Gone With The Wind'
Height: 3 feet
Spacing: 18 inches
Sunlight:
Hardiness Zone: 3a
Brand: Walters Gardens
Description:
This attractive, fine-textured grass features airy plumes of tan flowers and seed heads that gently sway in the wind all season long; this compact, shorter cultivar is very adaptable, and ideal as an accent in the urban landscape
Ornamental Features
Gone With The Wind Prairie Dropseed features delicate plumes of tan flowers rising above the foliage from mid summer to early fall, which emerge from distinctive silver flower buds. The tan seed heads are carried on showy plumes displayed in abundance from early fall to early winter. Its grassy leaves are green in color. As an added bonus, the foliage turns gorgeous shades of orange and red in the fall.
Landscape Attributes
Gone With The Wind Prairie Dropseed is an open herbaceous perennial grass with an indistinguished habit of growth. It brings an extremely fine and delicate texture to the garden composition and should be used to full effect.
This is a relatively low maintenance plant, and is best cleaned up in early spring before it resumes active growth for the season. It is a good choice for attracting birds to your yard, but is not particularly attractive to deer who tend to leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. It has no significant negative characteristics.
Gone With The Wind Prairie Dropseed is recommended for the following landscape applications;
- Mass Planting
- General Garden Use
- Naturalizing And Woodland Gardens
Planting & Growing
Gone With The Wind Prairie Dropseed will grow to be about 30 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 24 inches. When grown in masses or used as a bedding plant, individual plants should be spaced approximately 18 inches apart. Its foliage tends to remain dense right to the ground, not requiring facer plants in front. It grows at a fast rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 10 years. As an herbaceous perennial, this plant will usually die back to the crown each winter, and will regrow from the base each spring. Be careful not to disturb the crown in late winter when it may not be readily seen!
This plant does best in full sun to partial shade. It is very adaptable to both dry and moist locations, and should do just fine under typical garden conditions. It is considered to be drought-tolerant, and thus makes an ideal choice for a low-water garden or xeriscape application. It is not particular as to soil type or pH, and is able to handle environmental salt. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments. This is a selection of a native North American species.
