Calamagrostis Overdam

This highly regarded, ornamental grass forms neat, compact clumps of upright, slender blades elegantly variegated with rich green and clean white vertical stripes. The brightly edged foliage is particularly brilliant in spring and early summer, illuminating partially shaded corners or standing out starkly in full sun. Starting in June, rigid, pencil-thin stalks rise high above the foliage mound, carrying narrow, airy panicles of purplish-bronze flower plumes. As the season transitions into autumn and winter, both the foliage and the tall stalks dry out to a glorious, shimmering wheat-gold. Valued by garden designers for its strict, non-flopping habit, this low-maintenance grass remains perfectly upright through autumn wind and winter snow, offering invaluable structural interest until it is cut back hard in early spring. Adaptable to most soil types, including heavy clay, but prefers moist, humus-rich, well-drained conditions.