10 Best Easy-to-Grow Ornamental Grasses That Add a Professional Polish to Your Backyard

Few plants earn their place in a yard quite as elegantly as ornamental grasses, as landscape designers well know. These elegant grasses bring movement, texture, winter interest and a welcome sense of ease – some of the ingredients designers use to make planting feel intentional rather than simply filled in. August is an especially useful moment to spot what your garden lacks, whether that's privacy, a softer path edge, late-season color or connectivity – all of which can be stylishly solved with the right ornamental grass.

The design trick is to match the best ornamental grass to the job. Tall, upright grasses will screen an awkward view; blue grasses cool off a fiery color scheme; frothy grasses bring together an otherwise disjointed border. Landscape designers also use grasses where flowers cannot deliver: foliage adds structure from spring onwards, seedheads catch low fall light, and many retain their good looks through winter.

These 10 designer-favored grasses will help give any yard a more polished, professional feel, whatever its size or style. Each solves a particular design challenge, from blocking a neighbor's view to lifting a shady border or making a dry front yard feel purposeful. And don't fret: these are all non-invasive ornamental grasses, and these very well-behaved choices sill stay where they're planted so you can create a designer-worthy result with confidence this season.

1. Best Grass for Privacy: Totem Pole Switchgrass

• Zones 4-9
• Full sun
• Flowers August-October
• Grows to 6' high and 30" wide

Panicum virgatum ‘Totem Pole’ is the designer’s elegant answer to a neighbor’s all-too-visible window. Its dramatically upright habit creates a tall, leafy screen with plenty of softness and movement, but without swallowing the whole border. Stylish privacy plants to screen your garden are a great alternative to a privacy screen, and this is the best ornamental grass for privacy. Just tuck a row of these ornamental grasses beside a patio, use it to line a property boundary, or plant a small group to turn an exposed sitting area into a cosy, private retreat.

This is a clumping switchgrass so it makes a steadily fuller crown rather than sneaking across the bed underground. Give it full sun – six or more hours of direct light – and average soil; switchgrass is also more forgiving of clay than many ornamental grasses. Water regularly during its first year while roots establish, then leave the stems in place over winter for a lovely pale, airy living screen. In late winter, cut the clump back to 4-6 inches before fresh growth begins. Switchgrass Totem Pole plants are available from Plant Addicts.

2. Best Grass for Softening Hard Landscaping: Undaunted Ruby Muhly Grass

• Zones 5-9
• Full sun
• Flowers August-October
• Grows to 24" high and wide

Designers love to use Undaunted ruby muhly grass (Muhlenbergia reverchonii ‘Undaunted’) to take the edge off hardscaping, so this is one of those divine low-water plants that soften hard landscaping without all the hard work. Plant this ruby muhly grass beside a patio, driveway, retaining wall or path and its fine foliage and airy fall flowers will create a soft, almost gauzy transition between paving and planting. For maximum designer vibes, plant it in a loose drift of three, five or more, allowing the individual mounds to mingle into one soft, billowy layer. The late-season pink-to-ruby plumes are a gorgeous bonus, particularly when low afternoon sun shines through them, and this cold-hardy alternative to classic pink muhly thrives down to USDA Zone 5.

Undaunted ruby muhly grass is available from Wilson Bros Gardensand is a dense, well-behaved grass, not a runner, so will stay where you put it. Give it full sun and well-drained soil; if your soil is heavy, plant slightly raised to keep water away from its roots in winter. Water deeply and regularly during its first season, then only occasionally once established. In late winter, trim the old foliage back to about 4 inches before new growth appears.

3. Best Grass for Border Movement: Brush Strokes Little Bluestem

• Zones 3-9
• Full sun
• Flowers August-October
• Grows to 36" high and 24" wide

‘Brush Strokes’ little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium ‘Brush Strokes’) gives sunny borders the easy, breeze-catching movement designers love, without the bulk or roaming habit of larger grasses. Its tidy upright clumps weave neatly among perennials such as salvias, while slender blue-green blades slowly turn a beautiful wine-red and copper as the season unfolds.

This native grass stays where it's planted, forming a neat tuft rather than spreading through the bed. Give it full sun and well-drained, ordinary-to-dry soil; shade is what makes little bluestem flop. Skip the fertilizer, water it while it settles in, then enjoy its tawny stems and bristly seedheads through winter before cutting it back in late winter. ‘Brush Strokes’ little bluestem plants are available from Plant Addicts.

4. Best Grass for a Hot, Dry Yard: Common Blue Grama

• Zones 3-10
• Full sun
• Flowers June-September
• Grows to 24" high and wide

Ornamental grasses offer some of the best drought-tolerant plant choices, and common blue grama (Bouteloua gracilis) proves a climate-resilient front yard can still be full of personality. This compact native grass forms low blue-green tufts topped in summer with wonderfully quirky, eyelash-like seedheads and is ideal for gravel gardens, curb strips and xeriscape schemes. Plant it in loose drifts for full on designer effect.

A small, clumping grass, common blue grama plants are available from Plant Addictsand deliver a naturalistic look without wandering through the bed. It thrives in full sun, heat, wind, and fast-draining soil, and is one of the best choices for a spot that bakes in summer. Water until rooted in, then water only during prolonged drought.

5. Best Grass for a Cooling Effect: Blue Fescue

• Zones 4-8
• Full sun 
• Flowers June-July
• Grows to 18" high and 24" wide

Blue fescue grass, often sold as ‘Elijah Blue’ (Festuca glauca), is the landscape designer’s little color-cooling trick for borders full of fiery reds, oranges, and yellows. Its icy blue, spiky mounds make those warm shades pop even more, while adding a crisp, modern rhythm along a path or at the front of a border.

Each blue fescue grass forms a neat, non-running tuft, so try planting five or seven together, spaced about 12 inches apart, for a deliberate, repeated look. This little lovely appreciates full sun and excellent drainage so it’s perfect for gravel gardens, raised beds and sandy soil. Comb out any dead foliage in early spring and replace individual plants that may become bare in the center after a few years. Blue fescue plants are available from Plant Addicts.

6. Best for Brightening a Border: ‘Hello Spring’ Feather Reed Grass

• Zones 4-8
• Full sun or partial shade
• Flowers June-July 
• Grows to 4' high and 2' wide

‘Hello Spring’ feather reed grass (Calamagrostis × acutiflora ‘Hello Spring’) is a designer’s answer to a border that feels a little too dark or heavy. Its bright variegated foliage catches the light, while its narrow, upright shape adds a fresh vertical accent. While it's happy in sun, it flourishes with only six hours of sunshine a day, so you can thread it through a border that moves from partial shade into sun for an instant luminous lift.

This feather reed grass is a disciplined clump-former so it stays put rather than wandering into neighboring plants. Give it reasonably moist, well-drained soil and water in dry spells, especially during its first year. Leave its soft, dried plumes standing over winter, then cut them back in late winter before new shoots appear. ‘Hello Spring’ feather reed grass plants are available from Plant Addicts.

7. Best Grass for Shade: ‘Aureola’ Japanese Forest Grass

• Zones 5-9
• Part shade to full shade
• Flowers July-August
• Grows to 3' high and wide

‘Aureola’ Japanese forest grass (Hakonechloa macra ‘Aureola’) is the designer’s way of making a shady path, set of steps or tucked-away seating spot feel brighter and more inviting. Its arching gold-striped leaves spill gently over the edge of a border, catching every bit of available light and naturally drawing your eye onward. Repeat it at intervals along a path or beneath shrubs for a subtle golden thread that makes the whole space feel more connected.

Unlike a grass that spreads by runners, ‘Aureola’ forms a low, graceful clump that slowly becomes more generous with time. Plant ‘Aureola’ Japanese forest grass, available at Nature Hills, in partial or dappled shade, in soil that stays moist but drains freely; hot afternoon sun can scorch its foliage. Water in dry spells, especially during its first year, and cut back the old leaves in late winter before fresh spring growth emerges.

8. Best Grass for Adding a Connecting Airy Layer: Golden Dew Tufted Hair Grass

• Zones 4-9
• Full sun to part shade
• Flowers July-September
• Grows to 3' high and wide

Golden Dew tufted hair grass (Deschampsia cespitosa ‘Goldtau’) is perfect when a border has lovely individual plants but still feels a little disjointed, or you have an awkwardly-shaped garden and wish to tie its various parts together. Landscape designers use its cloud-like sprays of tiny golden-green flowers to float between bolder shapes, cleverly softening the join between perennials, shrubs, and hard edges. It's particularly beautiful planted in small groups among hostas, heucheras, ferns and other plants with larger leaves.

Tufted hair grass is a tidy clump-former, not a runner, so it gives that airy meadow effect while staying beautifully contained. It is happiest in sun or part shade with reasonably moist, well-drained soil, and it is more forgiving of heavier ground than many ornamental grasses. Water during dry periods in its first season, then leave the faded flower stems for winter texture before cutting the clump back in late winter. ‘Goldtau’ tufted hair grass plants are available from Sunny Valley Farms.

9. Best Grass for an Informal Vibe: Prairie Dropseed

• Zones 3-8
• Full sun
• Flowers August-October
• Grows to 18" high and wide

Prairie dropseed (Sporobolus heterolepis) is the designer’s choice for creating a graceful transition from a tidy border to a looser meadow planting. Its fine, arching foliage forms low, well-behaved clumps that work beautifully repeated in a ribbon, linking your border planting with prairie-style favorites such as coneflowers, asters, and black-eyed Susans. And although this brings a relaxed, informal vibe, it's still a very well-behaved ornamental grass.

The real magic happens in late summer, when Prairie dropseed's airy flower stems release a warm, lightly sweet fragrance, often compared to coriander or buttered popcorn. This clumping native stays put, thrives in full sun and well-drained ordinary-to-dry soil, and needs regular watering only in its first season. Leave its foliage standing for winter texture, then cut it back in late winter. Prairie dropseed plants are available from Plant Addicts.

10. Best Grass for a Purple Color Scheme: Twilight Zone Little Bluestem

• Zones 3-9
• Full sun
• Flowers September-October
• Grows to 5' high and 3' wide

Landscape designers are favoring purple palettes right now, and filling borders with ravishing purple blooms. And their secret to keeping the purple color scheme going long after the flowers have peaked is the unusual ornamental grass, ‘Twilight Zone’ little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium ‘Twilight Zone’). Its cool blue foliage is brushed with purple in summer, then deepens into rich mauve, violet, and burgundy in fall. Use a few clumps through the middle of a border to echo dark dahlias, purple-leaved shrubs and plum-toned sedums.

This North American native grass forms a tall, tidy clump and is best placed in the middle or back of a sunny border as full sun brings out its richest coloring and helps it stay upright. Water regularly in its first season, then allow the soil to dry slightly between deep waterings. Leave the stems in place over winter for their handsome silhouette, cutting them back in late winter before new growth begins. ‘Twilight Zone’ little bluestem plants are available from Plant Addicts.