Grow and Care for Red Tussock Grass

Grow red tussock grass in full sun on soil that drains. Red tussock grass is Chionochloa rubra. It is not pampas grass.

Give it full sun and soil that drains

Red tussock grass is an evergreen clump from New Zealand. Give it full sun and soil that drains. Full sun keeps the blades red. Light shade is tolerated, but deep shade dulls the color. Water through the first growing season. Once the roots take, skip extra water except during a long dry spell. Inland heat still needs summer water; a cool coast can skip more. [1] Standing water around the crown in winter is the usual cause of rot. [2] Red Tussock Grass is about 3 to 4 feet tall and wide, with slender red-tinted blades and loose heads in late summer.

Plant in spring or fall, at the same depth as the pot

Set a nursery clump in spring or fall, when you can keep the soil moist. Dig a hole twice as wide as the root ball, not deeper, and set the crown at the same depth it sat in the pot. In heavy clay, plant on a raised mound so winter water runs off. [3]

1. Plant in spring or fall. You can plant in summer only if you can water in dry spells.
2. Dig a hole twice as wide as the root ball. Set the crown at soil level; do not bury it.
3. In clay, plant on a raised mound so water does not sit on the crown in winter.
4. Water it in, and keep the first year moist while the roots take.
5. Keep mulch off the crown.

Grow it in a pot that drains

A draining pot works if the garden stays wet in winter, or if you want one plant on a patio. Use potting mix, not garden soil, and empty the saucer after you water. Keep the pot outdoors. This is not a windowsill plant.

1. Choose a pot with a drainage hole, and fill it with potting mix.
2. Set the crown at mix level, water it in, and do not leave the pot in a saucer of water.

Comb out dead blades, and cut spent stems in early winter

This mound stays evergreen, so do not shear it to the ground the way you would a deciduous grass. Pull or comb the brown blades by hand, then cut the old flower stems at the base in early winter.

1. Comb or pull brown blades from the clump, working from the outside in.
2. Cut spent flower stems at the base in early winter, after the heads fade.
3. Leave the living red blades in place. Do not cut the whole mound to the ground.

Divide in spring, or sow seed in a cold frame

A crowded clump can be lifted and split in spring, or in early fall if you can water the new pieces. Each piece needs roots and green shoots. Seed is slower: sow it in pots in a cold frame in spring and keep the mix just moist until seedlings show.

1. Lift a mature clump in spring, or in early fall if you can water.
2. Split it so each piece has roots and shoots, then replant at the same depth and water it in.
3. To start from seed, sow in pots in a cold frame in spring. Press the seed onto the mix, keep it moist, and wait. Seedlings grow slowly the first year.

Not pampas grass — and not tufted hair grass

Pampas is a much larger grass with sharp leaves and dense, fluffy plumes — see How to Grow Pampas Grass. Red tussock grass is a finer evergreen mound about 3 to 4 feet, with loose late-summer heads, not a screen of plumes. A tag that says tussock grass may be tufted hair grass, a cooler, often greener clump — see How to Grow Tufted Hair Grass. Tussock sedge is a Carex, not a grass — see How to Grow Sedge. Red fescue is a lawn grass — see How to Grow Red Fescue. Red fountain grass is a Pennisetum with bottlebrush heads — see How to Grow Fountain Grass. Snow tussock on a New Zealand list is often a golden Chionochloa rigida, not this red plant. [4] Confirm the Latin on the tag is Chionochloa rubra.

If the crown sits wet through winter, move it onto a mound that drains and comb the brown blades in early winter.