Ornamental types of grasses are an interesting way to add depth and variety to a landscape composition. They can be used as both a central and background element for more colorful plants. There is plenty to choose from. Among the cereals there are many beautiful varieties for every taste, which will help create a unique design of the site.
The use of cereals in landscape design
Cereals for the garden can be perennial or annual. This characteristic directly affects the creation of beautiful compositions. Perennials (there are more of them) will look no less expressive in the next season after planting, but annuals will not survive the winter - they will have to be sown again next year. Before choosing a variety, it is important to know its other features:
- height;
- resistance to low temperatures;
- drought resistance;
- need for sunlight.
Attention! Color is not one of the important characteristics. All cereals have a soft, weakly expressed color range.
Cereals in landscape design primarily attractive by the shape of the leaves. Some of them bloom, but flowering is not the main decorative value of plants. They are very tenacious. Most varieties do not require nutrient soil. This is an excellent solution for decorating an area with poor soil. Moreover, cereals should be kept from growing. Without control and restrictions, they will quickly take over new areas in the garden, suppressing other crops.
Low-growing ornamental grasses in landscape design
The easiest way to classify these plants is by height. The height of low-growing species varies between 15-50 cm. As a rule, they are used as border decorations or for edging garden paths and paths. Cereals are also included in the compositions of rock gardens and flower beds.
Blue fescue
Blue fescue is one of the most popular ornamental crops. Grows up to 40 cm. The perennial is a tussock-hemisphere of blue or gray color. Thanks to its color, this cereal looks great in the decor of artificial ponds or against the background of stones. It can also be planted solo. Fescue grows very quickly. Grass is planted in spring or autumn. Once every two seasons, the bunch can be divided to propagate and rejuvenate the plant.
Attention! Blue fescue tolerates winter without shelter.
Another low-growing representative of cereals is maned barley. Height - up to 50 cm. Its luxurious lush inflorescences of pink-violet or pearl-green color (later - white) will complement any composition with other flowers, especially those that bloom for a short time. In nature it is a perennial, but depending on the climate middle zone poorly adapted. In winter, maned barley often freezes, so it is used as an annual. In the warm season, the plant normally tolerates sunlight and cold rainy periods, but is afraid of heat and drought.
Maned Barley
Butelua (buffalo or pasture grass) can easily replace turf. This perennial is extremely unpretentious: it does not need watering, can withstand drought, and grows without fertilizing. Butelua does not need to be mowed, since its height does not exceed 20 cm. The inflorescences of the grass are small and one-sided. Over the course of the summer, they change color from bright red to brown, and then become pale yellow.
Medium-sized cereals in landscape design
Usually their height is 50-90 cm. Such plants are appropriate to use in multi-tiered compositions or planted as separate decorative islands. Cereals are also grown in mixborders. A viviparous sheep can be considered medium-sized. It is very similar to fescue, only its grass blades are taller (about 50 cm) and spreading. Bunches look beautiful in a regular flower bed, combined with wood shavings, bark or stones.
Sheep viviparous
The most beautiful feather grass is available and popular. It is planted with flower cushions on the lawn or in mixborders. The perennial grass is resistant to drought, but does not tolerate excess moisture, so it is important for it to organize drainage. Gray crystal threads look delicate and thin. Feather grass grows up to 80 cm. It is used to decorate flower beds or rocky decorative elements.
Feather grass is beautiful
Lagurus ovoid or haretail looks interesting and non-trivial in the landscape. At the ends of the stems it grows a snow-white fluffy spikelet. The haretail differs favorably from other cereals in its ability to grow in shaded areas. Its height is about 50 cm.
haretail
Tall varieties of cereals
Such crops occupy a special place in landscape decoration. Most often they solo in the decor. Although they can also act as a background, especially in multi-tiered compositions. Also, with the help of these plants, living screens are created on the site. Among these cereals there are many surprising or even amazing varieties:
- Miscanthus. Forms 2-meter ears with long leaves and silvery, golden panicles with a pink tint. The bushes grow lush.
Miscanthus
- Cortaderia or pampas grass. With plenty of sun it grows up to 3 m. There are also low-growing varieties. The bushes are spreading, with a fluffy creamy cap.
Pampas grass
- Pennisetum bristles. An original plant with drooping paniculate inflorescences of a violet-whitish color. Reminds me of fireworks. The length of the spikelet is up to 1 m. This cereal goes well with conifers.
Pennisetum bristles
- African millet. Another representative of the Pennisetum family. Leaves, stems and inflorescences are dark burgundy, even brown. Height is about 1 m. It is planted individually or in mixborders. Looks good cut.
pearl millet
- Ornamental sorghum. An annual grass with fancy ears. They consist of large round grains of brown color. The structure of the ear is loose, the leaves are wide. The plant copes with cold weather and is unpretentious to the composition of the soil.
Sorghum decorative
- Wild oats. It has flat inflorescences that droop like earrings on the stem. Blooms in autumn. The crop is often planted separately. Height - up to 1.2 m.
Cereals are not only well-known agricultural crops. There are those that grow freely and are of no benefit to humans, as well as species used for design.
Description of cereal crops and their importance for humans
The fruit of cereal plants is a monocotyledonous grain seed fused with a shell. The leaves are long, with parallel veins, narrow, two rows. The stem is hollow and thin. Usually long. Inflorescences are paniculate, spikelet or racemose.
The importance of cereal plants is great; it was from them, even in ancient times, that people learned to make bread and porridge. At first, bluegrass (the second name for the cereal family) was not given much attention until they realized that their fruits could be ground into dust, that is, into flour. Dough was made from flour, and cakes were baked from the dough, since today's loaves and long loaves did not yet exist. Later, cereals began to have not only nutritional, but also medical significance due to the beneficial substances they contain. In addition to cultivated plants that benefit humans, there are weeds that are harmful to agriculture, as well as perennial cereal grasses that are completely harmless.Cultivated cereals
Over time, people realized that not all grains are edible and suitable for cooking. They were looking only for those whose grains made tasty food. That is, cultivated cereals were needed. The person also realized that it is not necessary to collect something somewhere.
Look for suitable plants, go around every time and find out where they grow and in what quantities. Then take the seeds, take them home, and so on in a circle. After all, you can start growing cereal plants not far from your own home. Plant the fruits, water them and wait for them to sprout, grow into plants and ripen.
New fruits were collected, some were left for grinding, and some were left for the next sowing. This is how agriculture developed. New varieties of cereals were developed, which should be resistant to droughts and other negative influences. Breeders took into account the flower formula of cereals in order to predict the genetic structure of new plants and create a similar formula.
The modified individuals were subjected to thorough research. The main goal of breeders is to create perfect varieties. These plants must be absolutely resistant to drought, weeds and other adverse influences. Each variety has its own name.
List of cultivated, weed and herbaceous plants
Bluegrass is divided into three main categories: grains, weeds and grasses. Some species are used for decoration.
The lists do not represent all representatives, but several well-known cultivated, weed and herbaceous species. In fact, there are many more of them.
Cereals:
- millet;
- oats;
- barley;
- corn;
- rye;
- wheat.
- creeping wheatgrass;
- chicken millet;
- rye fire;
- annual bluegrass.
- feather grass;
- grate;
All cereal grasses that grow freely in meadows should not be called weeds. They are the main food for livestock and poultry.
Photos and names of cereal grains
Cultivated cereals are specially grown for use as a food product. In my food I use whole and crushed grains, flour and baked goods made from it.
Millet
Millet is a plant that tolerates heat and drought well. Common millet is valuable; it is from its seeds that millet is obtained. Homeland - Southeast Asia. It is grown everywhere, including on saline soils. High acidity is the only weakness of millet; it cannot tolerate it and dies. The grains are used to prepare porridges, soups, and also as feed for poultry.Oats
An annual plant that is widely used in agriculture. Towards negative conditions environment It is stable and can be grown on lands where it is quite cold. Originally from some provinces of Eastern China and Mongolia. Previously, it was perceived by farmers as a weed, but its feeding properties refuted this opinion. Later they learned to make various pastries from it, and the Germans brewed so-called white beer. It can be filmy or bare-grained. The latter is less common than the former and requires a lot of moisture.Barley
One of the most important cereal crops, developed relatively recently, about seventeen thousand years ago. Residents of the Middle East were among the first to notice its benefits. Bread made from barley flour is heavier and coarser than wheat, but it is still considered a healthier product. The plant is single-flowered and self-pollinating. Nowadays, barley is grown for both feed and food needs. Beer made from barley is also common among connoisseurs of this product.Corn
Also called maize or sweet corn. Used for feed and food needs. Of the entire genus, this is the only representative of cultivated cereals. It differs from other species of the entire family in its large cob with yellow seeds. Country of origin: Mexico.It ranks second in sales after wheat. It is used to make corn starch, canned food and even medicines.
Rice
An annual herbaceous plant. Requires special attention, the plant is capricious and needs a lot of moisture. It is grown in Asian countries, but some types of rice are grown in African countries. Rice fields are made so that they can be flooded with water (protection from sunlight) while the plant matures, but then drained for harvest. Cereals and starch are produced from grains. If the grains are germ, then they are perfect for making rice oil.Alcohol and medicines are made from rice. Rice straw is used to make paper, and the husks are used to make feed bran.
Rye
Nowadays, winter rye is mainly used for sowing, since it is more resistant to unfavorable conditions. An unpretentious plant, unlike wheat, rye is not particularly sensitive to soil acidity. The best soil for growing is black soil. Used for the production of flour, kvass and starch. Rye easily suppresses weeds, which greatly facilitates the fight against factors harmful to cultivation. The plant is biennial and annual. Most popular in Germany.Wheat
This grain crop is in first place in cultivation and sale. High-quality bread is baked from wheat flour, confectionery and pasta are produced. Wheat is also used in the production of beer and other alcoholic beverages. It is grown on almost all lands, except for areas belonging to the tropical zone. Includes about ten species.Many people believe that yellow spikelets with long whiskers are wheat. However, it is not. Wheat has grayish spikelets, fewer grains, and short whiskers.
Photos and names of weeds
A person has to fight against weed cereals. Many of these plants are used as animal feed.
Creeping wheatgrass
Easily displaces cultivated plants. Very tenacious, capable of drawing juices from the ground that other species need. The roots are powerful, more powerful than those of cultivated representatives. Does very well in moist, fertile soil.Chicken millet
Chicken millet or barnyard grass. It bears this name due to the fact that this plant is very similar to its cultivated relatives. It is distinguished by its large size and large leaves, which require a lot of nutrients. Naturally, it is forced to rob other plants and take everything for itself.Rosichka
Crabgrass, especially crabgrass, has the same ability to survive as other weeds. Can exist on acidic soils. It has a lot of seeds in its paniculate spikelets. For them to germinate, only two degrees of heat is enough.Rye fire
Can easily be confused with rye, but survival rate is slightly higher. Drought resistant. Lives in rye fields. When its seeds are mixed during collection with the seeds of a cultivated relative, the quality of the harvest decreases.Gumai
It also has another name - Aleppo sorghum. It is one of the most dangerous plants and poses a serious threat to cereal crops. It survives droughts well, but despite this, sorghum is very demanding of moist and fertile soil. It has a powerful rhizome for constant consumption of nutrients.Chaff multicolor
Affects legumes and cereals. The chaff is spread everywhere. Survives well in adverse conditions. The plant is strong and can reach one meter in height. Prefers nitrogenous soils.Bluegrass annual
Another representative of cereal weeds that harm agriculture. It grows in fields, mainly where grain crops are cultivated. Annual bluegrass is resistant to negative influences. This annual plant is widespread in Central Asia, Western Siberia, as well as in the Caucasus.Photos and names of cereal herbs
Cereal herbs can become a decoration for our summer cottages if we learn how to use them correctly.
Quaking grass
It grows mainly in the meadows of Europe. It resembles a bush with panicles of flattened spikelets. Loves sun rays and moderate moisture. Excellent as food for cattle and.Perlovnik
So called because its seeds are very similar to pearl barley. The plant is a perennial, growing in forests and sometimes in steppes. Often found along the shores of lakes and swamps. Includes several varieties.Feather grass
Lives in European steppes and meadows. It has a long thin spikelet that from a distance resembles a light gray thread. Very suitable as feed for farm animals. It needs sunny, neutral soils. Pollinates on its own.Kolosnyak
Grows in the southern parts of Europe. It has a long root as it grows on sandy soils. The plant is massive, with long thick spikelets. The color of the leaves is blue-green.Molinia
Large perennial plant. It is found in forests, swamps, as well as along the banks of rivers and lakes. It looks like a bush with straight leaves. The spikelets are paniculate, large, dark purple in color. It grows in the European part of the continent, in sunny areas or surfaces with moderate shade. Often used as an ornamental plant.How to use cereals in your summer cottage - video
Plant height:
Cereals in the garden
Ornamental grasses are an integral part of any landscape composition. They are able to complement the overall ensemble of the composition, give it an interesting look and make it more voluminous. Very often, such little things as phalaris growing among the stones, fescue neatly framing the border, marsh calamus near a babbling brook, a solitary blue-grass plant near a gigantic member in a rockery, majestic imperata, as well as bright bulbous ryegrass despite their small size, can significantly enliven any composition in a rock garden, rock garden and even a decorative pond.
Grasses come in different shapes and sizes. They differ in the shape and color of the leaves, the size of the stem and the placement of the leaves themselves on it. This helps to actively combine them with varieties of other herbs and create entire gardens from them. Ornamental grasses are distinguished by their ease of care and rapid growth. They are able to decorate both a small summer cottage and a personal property and even a winter garden. They can be used both when making bouquets and for decorating flower beds and mixborders.
Ornamental grasses are increasingly woven into garden landscapes and participate in the compositions of flower beds and other landscapes. Fashionable natural naturgarden and natural style only develops the popularity of these herbs. They help create exactly the mood that is necessary for landscape design.
It's impossible not to love grains. Thanks to them, the garden always remains decorative. They easily tolerate changing weather conditions and the onset of winter. Even at this time, they retain their decorative appearance and continue to decorate the garden until spring.Using grains in the garden, you can create amazing compositions. If you use only flowering plants, you will not achieve this effect. Cereals do not take over the main role of flowers in the overall design. They only carefully emphasize and make it possible to make the flower garden more delicate and unique.
Different shades of cereals, from silver to bronze, can make a special impression. Against their background, other plants are shaded more favorably and become even brighter. The flower garden will definitely play with all the colors, but at the same time it will not strain the eyes at all. By choosing the right cereals in shade and size, you will be able to create colorful flower beds, among which there will be islands of both primary and additional colors.
All grains differ in their shape and size. The structure and shape of their leaves are also different. This is what allows them to be widely used in landscape design. Moreover, their durability and ability to shine with beauty throughout all seasons will allow you to make minimal efforts to care for the flower garden or mixborder where cereals are planted. There is no need to constantly replant or remove flowers. Even in the absence of any flowers in early spring or autumn, the result will be a neat and finished look.Cereal selection
Depending on the location of the flower bed or flower bed, various ornamental grasses are selected. Before choosing, it is advisable to familiarize yourself with their features, preferences and possible heights. Some of them love moisture, others prefer dryness and warmth. Therefore, when choosing, all this must be taken into account.
All cereals are divided into warm- and cold-growing
Warm-growing cereals
Such cereal grasses wait until the soil and air warm up. Only then do they begin to actively grow. The most optimal temperature for them is 25°C. The maximum temperature will be approximately 35°C. During the cold season they practically do not grow. But when heat appears, they actively grow. Such plant species are characterized by long development of the flower spike.
It is convenient to plant such warm-growing cereals next to bulbous ones.. They will hide the flowers that are retiring and fading. With the help of them, it is excellent to hide drooping and outdated bulbs and to decorate the resulting empty spaces with their overgrown stems.
It is advisable to replant and separate cereals in spring and summer.. This is done by dividing the roots, but only during active growth. If young shoots have just begun to grow, you will have to wait a while and let them get stronger.
It is equally important to divide plants before flower stems appear. In this case, they will significantly slow down growth and the stems will become less strong. Some heat-loving cereals can be replanted in the fall.
Heat-loving ornamental cereals
Warm-season grains grow constantly in the summer. They look amazing. one of these is the grate or sand elymus. This cereal grows all summer. Molinia is a little different from the others in that it begins its active growth at lower temperatures. 20 degrees Celsius is enough for her. The older the plant, the more actively it grows when warm weather arrives.
Cold-growing ornamental grasses
Cold-growing cereals They begin to grow only with a decrease in temperature after a hot summer or immediately after the snow melts. This may be close to zero temperature. Their growth continues up to +24 degrees, and at higher temperatures it ends. The most active growth of these cereals is at +15-24 degrees. This period is characterized by high humidity and long daylight hours. As summer temperatures rise, there is more sunlight and less precipitation. At this time, cool-growing grasses stop growing. In the middle zone, these cereals have two growth periods, which occur in autumn and spring. Typically these include evergreen or semi-evergreen plants. Most of them grow even at low temperatures, before the arrival of winter cold. These green areas that appear in the garden at the beginning of spring are not afraid of frost. Herbs begin to bloom in early spring or early summer, and their panicles and spikelets remain throughout the summer and autumn, often until spring.
Due to their growth habits, cold-growing cereals are divided and replanted in early spring before the arrival of warm summer weather or in late summer, with lower temperatures, until mid-autumn, when there is a period of intensive growth. They are then cut back to make room for new foliage to form. During the summer dormancy period, it is not advisable to divide and replant these herbs.
With the help of meadow foxtail, lawns arranged in shade are used in landscape design. It blooms in May, forming fluffy and soft inflorescences reminiscent of a fox's tail.
Bulbous ryegrass tolerates cold well and is unpretentious to soils. On dry days and cold nights it forms magnificent decorative curtains. Having cut off the drying leaves in the summer, you can wait for new foliage in the fall, when the ryegrass regains its decorative appearance. To form a strong and beautiful plant, division should be carried out in spring or autumn.
Cirruschaete. Grows well in sunny areas and moist soils. A volumetric curtain in the form of a fountain can be 80 cm or more in height. It begins to bloom in late summer - early autumn, forming beautiful inflorescences of spikelets.
Barley is maned. This cereal can be stored in the garden for two months. To prevent self-seeding and ensure the plant has a second flowering, you should remove the inflorescences in time, preventing the seeds from setting. Barley is sown before winter or spring. One sowing is enough for this plant to remain in the garden for a long time. Maned barley is characterized by self-seeding, but it is not an annoying weed. It will decorate the area and will not grow much. If desired, this plant can be weeded without much difficulty, since it has thin shoots and shallow roots. Barley requires open sunny places. It tolerates drought well and does not require watering. It forms strong hummocks on nutritious soil, although it can develop even on poor sandy soils.
Reed dvukochnik. Quite a beautiful plant with variegated leaves, thanks to which it is actively used to decorate gardens. It grows well in moist soils and occupies large areas as it grows strongly. To limit its growth, wide metal strips should be dug into the soil to a depth of 15-20 cm or planted in a container. The dwarf plant grows up to 90-120 cm. It can be planted along the banks of reservoirs.
The most unpretentious cereals
Spreading boron is one of the first plants to appear in spring. Its most decorative part is considered to be the bright leaves, which have a green or yellow tint depending on the variety, and can also be multi-colored. In order to get a rich yellow group in shade or partial shade, you can plant the Aureum variety. This plant is a cold-growing plant and does without shelter in winter. With the arrival of hot summer days, its growth stops. Since the rhizome grows strongly, you need to be careful with this plant. It is better to propagate boron by division - this will allow you to quickly form a beautiful clump. The plant can also be obtained from seeds. All new plants adopt varietal properties. Boron can also reproduce by self-sowing.
Buharniksoft. One of the few groundcover grasses with white striped leaves. It is used to strengthen slopes and create low borders, but care must be taken to ensure that the grass does not spread to the sides. Variety Variegatus has leaves from 15 to 20 cm high stem peduncle. With a long spring and early autumn, the buharnik will grow well, even with insufficient watering and on infertile soil.
The plant loves sunlight most of all on cold days. In hot weather it is better to shade it, and in rain the buharnik will lie down. Division is carried out in autumn or spring. When a plant self-sows, its seedlings will produce pure green leaves and behave too aggressively.
Acute-flowered reed grass. If you plant reed grass in the foreground, it will look like a translucent canvas or a living screen. Then the main composition will be viewed through this cereal curtain. The genus Veinik from the Poaceae family includes more than 200 species of various reed grasses. In the conditions of our climatic zone, the original reed grass grows - acute-flowered. This cold-growing perennial grass has a creeping rhizome. Varietal reed grasses do not have root shoots and are not characterized by aggressiveness. Acute-flowered reed grass grows up to 150 cm or more, is undemanding and drought-resistant. It is characteristic of him fast growth and flowering in July. Looks impressive near a pond. A large number of
The long and narrow spikelets of reed grass flutter beautifully in the wind, which gives the garden a special atmosphere.
This quality distinguishes them from other gardens. In early spring, the reed grass begins to grow long leaves, by mid-summer it blooms with long panicles, and in the fall the garden of cereals takes on a crimson hue. Cerealsgardens retain their decorative value all year round.
The appearance of ornamental grasses allows them to combine well with different landscape objects and different garden styles. There are many gardening “ideas” with herbs and grains.
The most popular among them is the garden of ornamental grasses and cereals.
Rules for the composition of ornamental grasses and cereals
There will be an original, fashionable flower garden, but not of perennial flowers. To set up this garden, you will need many different cereal crops, so that they differ in the shape of the clump, height, shades of foliage, and have different inflorescences.
It is necessary to plant ornamental cereals and herbs in the garden in the same way as perennial flowers in a flower bed, applying the basic laws of composition. The location for cereal crops must be sunny, open and such that you can clearly see it.
Ornamental grasses and grains are planted in clumps next to each other; as a rule, they are not decorated with bright decorative elements; several beautiful boulders or decorative fill will fit well into such a “garden.”
How to plant ornamental grasses and grains
To create your own garden, you need to stock up on seedlings of different types of cereal crops. Some can be purchased at nurseries, and rare ones can be grown from seeds yourself. Ornamental grasses in pots are first placed in the place chosen for the garden in order to choose a good location, and then removed from the pots and planted.
It is necessary to give importance to the size of the clumps in a mature state, as well as their height. It is recommended to make intervals between planting ornamental grasses equal to the height of certain cereals.
A garden of ornamental herbs and cereals can be in itself, then they must be perceived as a specific object and placed according to the same rules as rock gardens or flower beds.
You can install a mini gazebo, pergola or arch. Place 1-2 large boulders nearby and create an iridarium. And near the gazebo there may be a garden of cereals, which you can add a stone figurine and place a beautiful piece of driftwood.
Features of ornamental grasses and cereals
Perennial grasses are unpretentious, but they still have some peculiarities: not all of them are planted in a permanent place. “Seedlings” of some cereals should grow stronger in a small bed allotted to them. Seedlings planted at the germination stage in a permanent place are suppressed by other plants. They can be planted immediately only in open places where there are no other flowers in the neighborhood. But there are unpretentious herbs and annuals that are sown directly by seed in open ground.
Big and small
The shape and size of the ornamental grass bush is very diverse. Among them there are compact low-growing plants (fescue), which take root well in rocky gardens, fill voids in mixborders or form light borders. These types of cereals go well with heathers.
Large grains usually occupy a central place in the flower garden. Good partners for large grains are mullein, dahlias, and various plants with lacy foliage. Both low-growing and tall grasses are combined with conifers and shrubs with a spherical crown, for example, barberry. Some types of grasses are distinguished by bright decorative features that require a special environment.
For example, the dark foliage of the ophiopogon variety "Nigrescens" is spectacular only against a light background, and the shoots of the rush plant variety "Spiralis" next to flowering plants are lost. Such cereals are best supplemented with stones, or planted individually in flowerpots.
Ornamental types of grasses are an interesting way to add depth and variety to a landscape composition. They can be used as both a central and background element for more colorful plants. There is plenty to choose from. Among the cereals there are many beautiful varieties for every taste, which will help create a unique design of the site.
The use of cereals in landscape design
Cereals for the garden can be perennial or annual. This characteristic directly affects the creation of beautiful compositions. Perennials (there are more of them) will look no less expressive in the next season after planting, but annuals will not survive the winter - they will have to be sown again next year. Before choosing a variety, it is important to know its other features:
- height;
- resistance to low temperatures;
- drought resistance;
- need for sunlight.
Attention! Color is not one of the important characteristics. All cereals have a soft, weakly expressed color range.
Grains in landscape design are primarily attractive by the shape of their leaves. Some of them bloom, but flowering is not the main decorative value of plants. They are very tenacious. Most varieties do not require nutrient soil. This is an excellent solution for decorating an area with poor soil. Moreover, cereals should be kept from growing. Without control and restrictions, they will quickly take over new areas in the garden, suppressing other crops.
Low-growing ornamental grasses in landscape design
The easiest way to classify these plants is by height. The height of low-growing species varies between 15-50 cm. As a rule, they are used as border decorations or for edging garden paths and paths. Cereals are also included in the compositions of rock gardens and flower beds.
Blue fescue
It is among the most popular ornamental crops. Grows up to 40 cm. The perennial is a tussock-hemisphere of blue or gray color. Thanks to its color, this cereal looks great in the decor of artificial ponds or against the background of stones. It can also be planted solo. Fescue grows very quickly. Grass is planted in spring or autumn. Once every two seasons, the bunch can be divided to propagate and rejuvenate the plant.
Attention! Blue fescue tolerates winter without shelter.
Another low-growing representative of cereals is maned barley. Height - up to 50 cm. Its luxurious lush inflorescences of pink-violet or pearl-green color (later - white) will complement any composition with other flowers, especially those that bloom for a short time. In nature it is a perennial, but is poorly adapted to the climate of the middle zone. In winter, maned barley often freezes, so it is used as an annual. In the warm season, the plant normally tolerates sunlight and cold rainy periods, but is afraid of heat and drought.
Maned Barley
Butelua (buffalo or pasture grass) can easily replace turf. This perennial is extremely unpretentious: it does not need watering, can withstand drought, and grows without fertilizing. Butelua does not need to be mowed, since its height does not exceed 20 cm. The inflorescences of the grass are small and one-sided. Over the course of the summer, they change color from bright red to brown, and then become pale yellow.
Medium-sized cereals in landscape design
Usually their height is 50-90 cm. Such plants are appropriate to use in multi-tiered compositions or planted as separate decorative islands. Cereals are also grown in mixborders. A viviparous sheep can be considered medium-sized. It is very similar to fescue, only its grass blades are taller (about 50 cm) and spreading. Bunches look beautiful in a regular flower bed, combined with wood shavings, bark or stones.
Sheep viviparous
The most beautiful feather grass is available and popular. It is planted with flower cushions on the lawn or in mixborders. The perennial grass is resistant to drought, but does not tolerate excess moisture, so it is important for it to organize drainage. Gray crystal threads look delicate and thin. Feather grass grows up to 80 cm. It is used to decorate flower beds or rocky decorative elements.
Feather grass is beautiful
Lagurus ovoid or haretail looks interesting and non-trivial in the landscape. At the ends of the stems it grows a snow-white fluffy spikelet. The haretail differs favorably from other cereals in its ability to grow in shaded areas. Its height is about 50 cm.
haretail
Tall varieties of cereals
Such crops occupy a special place in landscape decoration. Most often they solo in the decor. Although they can also act as a background, especially in multi-tiered compositions. Also, with the help of these plants, living screens are created on the site. Among these cereals there are many surprising or even amazing varieties:
- . Forms 2-meter ears with long leaves and silvery, golden panicles with a pink tint. The bushes grow lush.
Miscanthus
- Cortaderia or . With plenty of sun it grows up to 3 m. There are also low-growing varieties. The bushes are spreading, with a fluffy creamy cap.
Pampas grass
- Pennisetum bristles. An original plant with drooping paniculate inflorescences of a violet-whitish color. Reminds me of fireworks. The length of the spikelet is up to 1 m. This cereal goes well with conifers.
Pennisetum bristles
- African millet. Another representative of the Pennisetum family. Leaves, stems and inflorescences are dark burgundy, even brown. Height is about 1 m. It is planted individually or in mixborders. Looks good cut.
pearl millet
- Ornamental sorghum. An annual grass with fancy ears. They consist of large round grains of brown color. The structure of the ear is loose, the leaves are wide. The plant copes with cold weather and is unpretentious to the composition of the soil.
Sorghum decorative
- Wild oats. It has flat inflorescences that droop like earrings on the stem. Blooms in autumn. The crop is often planted separately. Height - up to 1.2 m.