Cereals in landscaping are an easy way to transform your garden into a cozy setting. The variety of types, shapes, heights and shades of cereals allows every gardener to make an interesting choice. Today there are more than 11 thousand species of them.

Cereals are chosen for the decorativeness of their leaves; rare varieties have beautiful flowering. Such plants do not require special care, take root in poor soils, and therefore are ideal for cold regions. Most varieties are resistant to diseases and pests.

What compositions can be made using cereals? This can be a garden path decoration, a multi-tiered flower bed or a mixborder. From tall species, you can create a shaded place in the garden, hidden from prying eyes. Decorative grasses and herbs in landscape design are used quite widely.

Cereals used for decoration are classified by height:

• undersized;
• medium-sized;
• tall.

Plants are considered undersized 15-40 cm in height. Such cereals are indispensable for decorating garden paths, single-tier flower beds. Small lush bushes harmonize with rocky areas, with their help you can create an image of wildlife in the garden. They fill well the space between ornamental shrubs in mixborders.

Medium-sized varieties reach from 40 to 90 cm. They are planted in multi-tiered flower beds or in separate groups in the garden, they are decorated with artificial reservoirs. Plants over 90 cm tall are called tall. They are used much less often than undersized ones and are used as a background in composite compositions. They create a great screen effect.

Ordinary cereals are not inferior in beauty to flowers and shrubs. Their advantage is that they fit harmoniously into any ensemble. They are good on their own or in groups. The most popular types of undersized varieties:

1. 1 Fescue is a perennial fluffy plant. It has needle-like leaves and original olive, blue and blue coloration.
2. 2 Gray Keleria is a dwarf annual herb up to 10 cm high. It has hard gray-green leaves, suitable for stony areas. It tolerates cold well, but does not like excessive moisture.
3. 3 Golden Lamarckia is an annual with dense panicles, resistant to cold.
4. 4 Bulbous ryegrass is found in every garden. It is a bush with sharp, light green leaves and white longitudinal stripes on them.
5. 5 Foxtail is an aesthetic grain with golden foliage and silky spikelets. Good for combining with other plants in a flower bed, as its root system does not spread and does not interfere with neighbors.

Medium-sized varieties used in landscape design:

1. 1 Maned barley is an annual growing up to 0.5 m. Its graceful spikelets will create the necessary background for flowering plants in a mixborder.
2. 2 Feather grass is a guest from the steppe who loves warmth and light. Feather grass is planted in a group so that the spikelets form a smooth, silky surface.
3. 3 Imperata is the owner of bright leaves. This perennial cereal will take root well near an artificial reservoir.
4. 4 Falyaris Canary is also used to decorate a reservoir. A decorative grass with narrow leaves will be an excellent neighbor in a multi-tiered flower garden.

Tall varieties:

1. 1 Chinese miscanthus is the most popular specimen of tall grains. Panicle inflorescences have a wide color palette (from white to maroon).
2. 2 Cortaderia - the owner of spectacular inflorescences of light yellow and pink shades. This cereal is thermophilic and requires shelter for the winter.
3. 3 Tall barley is a lush green plant with purple inflorescences, reaches a height of up to 1.5 m. This tall grass is unpretentious, takes root on almost any soil, tolerates moisture and shade well. Will be a great neighbor for yellow and orange flowers.

What to choose for flower bed decoration?

Most cereals take root better in poor soils. In fertile soil, plants grow too much and lose their shape. When choosing a grain, one should take into account its moisture resistance. Most do not tolerate excess water in the soil, therefore, a drainage layer must be equipped when planting. There are also moisture-loving grasses - sedge, miscanthus, falaris, and calamus. Combinations of water-loving specimens and plants that do not tolerate moisture are best avoided.

Cold resistance is another important consideration when choosing. Many cereals show their decorative effect only under the condition of good lighting and warmth. If a group of cereals is planted, then all plants should have similar care requirements. The choice of plant depends on the type of composition. To create an ensemble of cereals, you need to pick up plants with different heights and leaf colors.

Planting cereals and herbs in a flower garden should follow a clear pattern so that they do not shade each other, neighboring flowers and shrubs. When drawing up a scheme for a multi-tiered flower garden, you need to take into account the flowering time of the cereal and its neighbors. This will help create the effect of a continuously blooming flower bed.

Some varieties can overwhelm neighboring plants, so be familiar with their properties before planting.

For beginner gardeners, it is better to choose low-growing annual varieties that are easier to care for.

Cereals can be planted both in spring and autumn. Landing takes place in several stages:

1. 1 The soil must be well loosened before planting. It is not necessary to use special fertilizers, since cereals are more comfortable in poor soils.
2. 2 The plot is marked taking into account the width of an adult plant. It is necessary to leave enough space between the cereals so that they do not interfere with each other and do not turn into dense thickets.
3. 3 If species are planted that are prone to suppress the growth of neighbors, it is necessary to limit their growth in advance with the help of partitions made of plastic or slate.
4. 4 To ensure that the cereal plant takes root, you can plant it on a separate bed. There the seedling will get stronger, then it can be transplanted into a flower bed or mixborder.

You can decorate the cereal composition with gravel filling. For flower beds and mixborders, a low border with ceramic blotches is suitable. Cereals are ideally combined with climbing plants, roses, chamomiles, yarrow, and some conifers.

The use of cereals in landscape design allows gardeners to easily turn an ordinary garden into an exemplary cozy place without much effort and expense.

Decorative grasses and herbs in landscape design are a great solution. They can be used to create original and expressive compositions even on non-fertile soil. These flowers are no less attractive than other crops. They are often the main decoration of the local area and garden. To create a spectacular cereal bed, you should better know what decorative species are, the conditions for their cultivation and combination.

Cereals in landscape design are perennial and annual, frost-resistant and thermophilic, high and low. They also differ in the rate of growth.... Most of them have nondescript small flowers. They are prized for their color and leaf shape.

The decorativeness of cereals is fully manifested when they cover a certain area. Solitary plants don't have this appeal.

Low-growing species reach a height of 15-40 cm. They are great for decorating garden paths, borders, carpet flower beds. Often, imitating natural corners, they are planted in rose gardens, rock gardens and rocky gardens.

Medium-sized cereals include plants with a height of 40 to 90 cm. They are used in group plantings and to create multi-tiered flower beds. Bright panicles and spikelets with graceful stems look good in individual groups in the garden and give the effect of continuous flowering in mixborders.

Cereals from 90 cm in height are considered tall. In multi-level flower beds, they play the role of a background and function as a screen or screen, hiding a cozy corner in the garden from prying eyes.

Choosing plants for your garden, novice gardeners can opt for more common types, such as:

Cereals can be combined. The main condition for choosing neighbors is that they should feel good on the same type of soil with the same moisture content.

Blue fescue

This perennial cereal plant reaches a height of one and a half meters. Its peculiarity is an unusual silvery color, which is in perfect harmony with pebbles, sandy base or large cobblestones.

Fescue is planted in the ground in early June ... The soil should be completely warmed up.

To keep the bushes neat and bright, you should adhere to the following rules:

• Moisture should not be allowed to stagnate in the soil, you should take care of drainage. Sandy soil is a good option.
• After a year, it is recommended to replant this cereal so that the leaves do not become pale.
• The bushes must be divided every 4 years.
• Fescue is a lawn plant that is grown to decorate gazebos, flower beds, paths.

Pogonaterum millet

In landscape design, the representative of cereal pogonaterum is millet (indoor bamboo) is the most unusual plant among all ornamental grasses and cereals. Its stems resemble bamboo thickets. Bright leaves come in a variety of shades of green.

It is a perennial plant. However, it is best to grow it in a warm home. It is impossible for the air temperature to drop below 18 degrees. In the summer, you can take the pogonaterum outside.

Indoor bamboo is not very easy to care for.... The owner must fulfill the basic requirements:

• Make sure that the site is well lit.
• Watering must be carried out regularly, including in winter, the soil in its upper layer should not dry out.
• It is also recommended to spray the green mass with a spray bottle.

Indoor bamboo, unlike many grains and herbs, requires constant feeding. For her, you can use mineral fertilizer, which is added to the water for irrigation 2 times a month.

Since the plant does not tolerate drying out, for its cultivation, a certain soil is required, containing a large amount of clay. It is also recommended to add humus, peat, etc. to the seedling mixture.

Cortaderia: features

Cortaderia can be up to 3 meters high. You should not combine it with other equally tall varieties, because it has a strong root system. It takes all the nutrients from the soil.

Before planting the cortaderia, it is important to think about how it will fit into the overall composition. Once planting her, getting rid of it will not be easy.

The plant has flexible and strong leaves. In late summer - early autumn, panicles up to 50 cm long are formed, which are at a level higher than the height of a person. Individual inflorescences have smooth, long, cream, white or beige hairs.

Cortaderia does not dictate special conditions for care and grows well in abandoned areas, annually capturing more and more territory.

Maned barley

This is another cereal commonly used in landscape design. Outwardly, it looks like ordinary barley and retains its positive characteristics. The plant tolerates frost well.

This decorative cereal belongs to the rapidly growing varieties. Bushes should be thinned periodically to keep the flower bed looking neat.

In temperate climates, barley can stay outside for the winter, but in order to protect it from frost, it is better to dig it up and place it on a table. It multiplies quickly, so it is best to cut it off before it is fully ripe.

Plant selection and care

To make cereal plants look well-groomed and neat, there are several planting rules. It must be borne in mind that they grow rapidly and can interfere with the development of neighbors. When planting ornamental cereals for the garden, you should adhere to certain rules:

• For plants to thrive, it is best to use barren sandy soil.
• Shrub growth should be limited to pebbles, stones and sand mounds.
• Place aggressive varieties first in pots, then lower them into the soil.
• It is not recommended to feed cereals so that they do not go into intensive growth and lose their shape.

Ornamental cereal plants are propagated by seeds or seedlings, depending on the specific variety. Some of these plants are best grown separately. If they are immediately planted in the main place, the flowers and bushes will be excessively large, which does not always look beautiful.

Seedlings can first be planted in a separate bed and, when a small bush appears, transplanted.

Today in landscape design, cereals are a fashionable trend. They are increasingly used not only to decorate flower beds, but also to create a special atmosphere in recreation areas and parks. Depending on the type, the plant can act as the main decoration or complement the composition of other flowers and bushes, and is also great as a frame for an artificial reservoir or as part of a hedge.

Composition rules

Having made the decision to create a flower bed of cereals, it is important to ensure that only those species that have similar care requirements grow in one area. In addition, it is important to combine plants according to the color scheme, which often changes throughout the season. You should also provide for the spreading of the bushes and their height.

It is not worth making flashy decorative elements on a cereal bed. Better to fill it with fine gravel or use a few picturesque boulders. Cereals look very harmonious with conifers, rose bushes and daylilies.

If cereals are planted near a high fence, gazebo or wall of the house, they can be combined with climbing plants. An excellent background would be:

• hop;
• grapes;
• discreet vines;
• ivy.

The size of the plot is of no small importance. In a small area, the presence of tall plants will contribute to shading the garden, which will visually reduce the area. Conversely, tall ornamental cereal compositions in the form of flower beds or tapeworms are welcome in a spacious garden.

Planting cereals

The landing site must be prepared in advance. Clear the area from debris and weeds and dig up. This work can be done in autumn or early spring. Since cereals prefer a soil that is not very fertile, no fertilization is required.

The land is leveled and the site is given the desired shape. The next step is marking, and here it is important not to be mistaken with the size of the cereals. If there is not enough space left, a neat flower bed will eventually turn into dense thickets.

Marking is done with sand. For each plant, delineate a place, taking into account the width of an adult plant. After marking, you can sow seeds or plant seedlings of cereals.

Since most cereals grow strongly and inhibit weaker plants growing in the neighborhood, it is necessary to think in advance about a way to restrain growth. To do this, for example, you can dig in strips of plastic or slate, limiting the area for each plant. The most aggressive species can be planted in plastic containers of suitable size.

Ornamental grasses have an amazing ability to blend into any landscape. With their help, you can create original and very expressive garden compositions even on poor soils. In terms of attractiveness, such plants are not inferior to many flower crops, and are often the main decoration of a garden or local area. To independently make a spectacular cereal flower bed on your site, you should learn better about the types, growing conditions and the rules for combining ornamental grasses and cereals.

Cereals, like flowers, are divided into annuals and perennials, thermophilic and frost-resistant, differ in height and growth rate. Most of these plants have small and inconspicuous flowers, and are prized for the color and shape of the leaves. The decorative effect is fully manifested after the growth of the curtain or when sowing with cereals of a certain area, but single plants cannot always boast of such attractiveness.

Stunted plants are 15 to 40 cm high. These cereals are irreplaceable in the design of borders, framing garden paths, look great in carpet flower beds. Most often they are planted in rocky gardens, rock gardens and rockeries, creating an imitation of natural corners.

Medium-sized cereals include plants from 40 to 90 cm high. Representatives of this group are very effective in group plantings, and are most often used to create multi-tiered flower beds. Graceful stems with bright panicles or spikelets give the effect of continuous flowering in mixborders, and look good when planted in separate groups in the garden.

Cereals are considered tall, reaching a height of 90 cm. They are usually used in multi-level flower beds as a background. In addition, plants planted in a row can act as a screen or screen, hiding cozy corners in the garden from prying eyes.

The most popular garden cereals

Type of cereals	Name	Short description
Undersized		Perennial lush bush with needle-like leaves and soft gray-green panicles-inflorescences. Coloring ranges from silver and olive to blue. It is necessary to plant only in sunny places, otherwise the decorativeness of the plant is lost
		Perennial plant, forms a compact shrub up to 30 cm tall. Has sharp, long leaves of light green color with white longitudinal stripes
		An annual frost-hardy plant with incredibly spectacular inflorescences. When growing, forms small neat bushes. Sow in early spring and autumn
		An annual cold-resistant cereal with beautiful dense panicles. It is necessary to plant in open sunny places, since in the shade the plant loses its attractiveness
Medium-sized		Annual cereal, forming dense bushes about half a meter high. It is valued for its graceful spikelets with long needles-awns, which at the time of flowering have a pink-purple hue
		Perennial cereal, thin spikelets of which are decorated with hair-like awns. When the feather grass grows, it looks like an iridescent silky carpet, silver or pinkish
		A biennial thermophilic grass that requires shelter for the winter. Prized for its long, fluffy spikelet inflorescences that can be white, pink or purple depending on the variety
		Perennial cereal with bright colored leaves. Grows well in lighted areas, near artificial reservoirs. Blooms rarely, throwing out white-silvery panicles
Tall		Spectacular thermophilic perennial. They are planted in sunny areas, they must be covered for the winter. Large lush panicle inflorescences, white, pink and light yellow, give the plant decorativeness
		Moisture-loving annual cereal, forming a dense curtain. Decorative thanks to the flat hanging spikelets, which are green at the beginning of flowering, and then acquire a rich bronze shade
		Luxurious perennial that forms large clumps. The plant has many species, differing in color and leaf shape. Spikelet inflorescences can be white, pink, burgundy

Cereals planting rules

Plant selection

To create a composition of cereals and herbs, everything must be accurately calculated. Cereals grow better on poor soils, so you should not fertilize the site before planting. The abundance of nutrients in the soil leads to overgrowth of clumps, the bushes cease to keep their shape and fall apart. This is especially true for tall grains. Another important condition is good drainage. If water stagnates on the site, the roots of the plants will rot, which will certainly affect the appearance and growth rate.

Soil moisture is of prime importance when choosing plant species. The moisture-loving cereals include:

Poor moisture tolerance:

When choosing plants, be sure to study all the information about them. You should not buy seeds just because the cereal in the picture looks very beautiful. As you know, the decorativeness of leaves and inflorescences strongly depends on the location of the site and the composition of the soil. You need to focus on other criteria - height, ability to grow, resistance to cold and other negative influences. If you have not dealt with cereals and herbs before, get for a start 2-3 varieties of low-growing annuals that do not require special care.

Composition rules

If you decide to create a flower bed from cereal species, follow the basic rule: all plants in one area must have similar requirements for growing conditions. In addition, plants should be correctly combined in terms of color (which can vary throughout the season), height and spreading of the bushes.

On a cereal bed, catchy decorative elements are not welcome; it is better to use a few picturesque boulders or make a dump of fine gravel. Low borders decorated with ceramic mosaics or natural stone are suitable for a multi-tiered flower bed and mixborder. Cereals look very harmonious next to conifers and rose bushes, they go well with daylilies.

When planting near a gazebo, a high fence or the wall of a house, cereals can be combined with climbing plants that will act as a background. Wild grapes, hops, ivy and discreet vines of various types are best suited for this.

The size of the plot is of great importance. If the area is small, the presence of tall plants planted in separate groups will help shade the garden and further reduce the area. In a spacious garden, on the contrary, tall cereal compositions are welcome, both in the form of flower beds and as tapeworms.

How to plant

First you need to prepare a place: the selected area is cleared of weeds and plant debris, and then dug deeply. This can be done both in autumn and early spring. It is not necessary to apply humus or other fertilizers, since ornamental grasses and grasses prefer poor soil.

Next, the land is leveled, give the site the desired shape. The next stage is marking. It is very important here not to be mistaken with the size of the bush, because if you leave little space, a neat flower bed will turn into dense thickets. The markings are done with sand, outlining a place for each plant, taking into account the width of an adult bush. After marking, seedlings of cereals can be planted or sown directly with seeds.

Most cereals tend to grow strongly, oppressing weaker plants in the vicinity. To prevent this from happening, you should think in advance about ways to contain growth. For example, you can dig in strips of slate or plastic, setting the desired boundaries for each of these cereals. Particularly aggressive species are best planted in plastic containers of the appropriate size.

Some cereals at the germination stage can be oppressed by neighboring plants, so it is not recommended to sow them directly into the ground. You can arrange a small temporary bed nearby and sow seeds there. Seedlings of cereals are also planted there until they are sufficiently strong. When the plant develops well and begins to form a bush, it can be safely planted in a permanent place.

Video - Ornamental grasses and herbs in landscape design

The choice of decorative cereals is great, there are more than 200 different types. They act as tapeworms or can complement other plants. They decorate rockeries and alpine slides, look spectacular by water bodies, frame the edges of flower beds. In the autumn and winter, the garden will not be empty. Unpretentious panicles grow to frost and even retain their decorative effect dry. They will give a special charm to both a village house and a chalet-style house, and a cottage made in a modern style.

They hibernate in the middle lane (with or without shelter)

One of the medium-sized, very decorative cereals, involuntarily attracting the eye with its airiness. Leaves of a bluish tint, narrow, tough, 35-40 cm, form a hemispherical dense bush already in the second year after sowing with seeds.

Effective in a rocky garden, in rockeries, rock gardens, as a curb plant, it can serve as a tamping for conifers with single plantings, repeating groups, while it is a completely independent plant that will not get bored even in single plantings.

Blue fescue is unpretentious, frost-hardy. It can be transplanted to

throughout the growing season. After flowering, it is recommended to remove the flower stalks, and comb out the bush with a three-armed hoe.

It is a perennial, sown with seeds in spring or before winter. He feels calm without shelter, it grows very strongly and quickly, therefore, once every 2 years, the tufts of blue fescue should be divided to renew the plant.

Cortaderia, also known as pampas grass, forms a bright, spreading bush with fluffy buds at the ends. This cereal plant is very tall. Under favorable conditions, it grows up to 3 m, but its undersized species are no less good. The main condition for perfect flowering is a lot of sun.

Here is another pinnate bristle, completely unlike its American counterpart, but no less beautiful. This perennial grows strongly and quickly, so it is worth limiting it with something. Its height can vary from 30 to 60 cm. The leaves are thin and flat, and the panicles are spike-shaped (up to 10 cm). Golden spikelets are surrounded by pinnate-hairy bristles, which is why it seems "hairy".

Miscanthus

Miscanthus forms lush tall bushes up to 2 m high. Long leaves hide playful golden, golden-pink or silvery paniculate inflorescences in their axils.

Miscanthus - Miscanthus sinensis "Zebrina". Very andan interesting decorative shape with transverse golden stripes on the leaves.

Feather grass as steppe grass is loved by many, they happily plant it in mixborders or breaking flower arrangements. The most beautiful gentle feather grass (Stipa pulcherrima) looks especially unusual in plantings.

Unusual pubescence from a distance looks like silvery crystal threads enveloping the plant. It grows no more than 80 cm in height, and long thin awns reach a length of 50 cm.

Spectacular perennial grass 50-90 cm tall. Impressive with the color of the leaves, which, like a chameleon, changes during the season. Dark green in May-June, leathery leaves are painted in gold, pink, orange, red and brown tones by August. Openwork greenish-purple spikelets form a light picturesque "fog" over the bush from June to September. Created for the role of a soloist, he is so beautiful and unusual. It is ideal for voluminous garden pots, the center of a raised flower bed, an alpine slide. A single plant or small groups look good against a lawn background. The inflorescences are used in cutting for live and dry flower arrangements.

Nicknamed the fox tail, it is an exclusively ornamental cereal plant up to 1.5 m in height. It tolerates frost perfectly.

Can be used for planting in shady gardens to create a background in combination with other flowering perennial plants. Prefers shaded areas and moist soil.

The seeds are good for human consumption.

Other names are mosquito grass, bison grass, pasture grass - an elegant ornamental plant. It is most effective in large masses or in large groups, especially against a contrasting background: pure black earth or dark gravel.

The name is related to the position of the spikelets, which hang on one side of the stem, although they are located on opposite sides. It grows in height only from 10 to 40 cm. In the process of growth, it changes color from bright red to brownish brown, and in autumn it acquires a straw-yellow color.

Prefers bright, sunny places. For the greatest decorative effect, the plant must be mowed periodically.

According to the folk it is called "pike".An amazingly ornamental garden plant, represented by a huge number of varieties that differ in the length of the leaves, the height of the stems and the shades of the spikelets.

The best place for a pike is a mixborder, the edge of the lawn or the edge of the forest, where it will look very impressive against the background of bushes or in combination with broadleaf plants. It can be used in a garden in the style of a natural landscape or in a rockery in combination with large boulders. Used as an accent, a specimen on the lawn, great in mass, when it forms huge wide clouds of flowers that change color depending on the season. A spectacular pike against the background of dark earth, various types of mulch: bark, gravel, pine nut shells. Do not forget that it self-seeds, and there is a possibility that sprouted young plants will have to be picked out of the gravel.

Forms clumps of green leaves with thin stems with one-sided cyst-like paniculate inflorescences with shiny drooping spikelets. Spikelets are often purple in color. The plant is quite frost-resistant, provided the soil is well waterproof.

Another name for the canary canary - it is distinguished by very decorative variegated leaves with green stripes on a white background.

Tall, fast-growing plant. Blooms in August with straight, rigid panicles.

Perennials 40-150 cm tall, usually forming rather loose turf, with short creeping rhizomes.

Groups of lightning bolts look exceptionally beautiful in naturgardens, near trees or bushes. As accent plants, they are very decorative in low mixborders, near lawns or in heather gardens.

Hakonehloya

Or hakonechloa (Hakonechloa). The plant is the most graceful member of the family of cereals and deserves a special place in every shady corner of the garden. There is only one species in the Hakonehloya family.

The height of the bush is about 40 cm. It grows rather slowly and in a distinctive way: a dense bush produces shoots that grow in one direction, forming an interesting cascade. Hakonehloa is distinguished by its large green foliage, reminiscent of bamboo, which becomes a pink hue in autumn.

Loves a warm, wind-protected place. With good soil moisture, you can grow in a sunny place.

Or downy flowers, the absolute giant of the world of ornamental grasses. Tall ornamental grass is the best decoration for autumn and winter landscapes. Downy flowers can reach a height of 3-3.5 meters. At the end of summer, silvery panicles, bursting upward from the base of gray-green leaves, reach just such impressive heights. Eriantus, with its tall, thin stems and bushy panicles, adds a touch of charm to the harsh winter landscape.

A perennial dense-soddy grass with gray-blue hard foliage. The "blueness" of foliage depends on the light intensity. The length of the leaves of the root rosette is about 5-7 cm. The diameter of the rosette is 10-12 cm. The foliage of the rosette is wintering. The height of the curtain during the flowering period is up to 40 cm (depending on the fertility of the soil). The spikelet is light green in contrast to the foliage. The inflorescence stems are quite tough and do not fall apart (keep their shape well). The green coloration of the spikelet remains until the beginning of August, then the spikelet turns yellow. Requires well-drained neutral to alkaline soils. With age, the center of the curtain falls out and the plant requires division. Propagated by dividing the bush or seeds. In the conditions of the northwest, it is frost-resistant (it does not require shelter for the winter), but there is a possibility of a winter attack from waterlogging. A decorative rosette in early spring during the period of re-growth of leaves and in the second half of summer during the period of re-growth of leaves after flowering. During flowering, wheatgrass is decorative due to spikelets. Suitable for decorating alpine slides and gravel gardens.

Many types are used in landscape design for the design of reservoirs. Fuzzies during fruiting (about 1.5 months) are very decorative thanks to pure white or bright red puffs. Suitable for growing at the edges of water bodies, especially Broad-leaved Fuzzy.

Great plants for decorating rockeries, heather gardens and the shores of water bodies, where they should be planted in groups or massifs. Fading inflorescences of cotton grass are often used in cutting to compose live and dry flower arrangements.

It has dark green, rather thick stems 10-50 cm high. A perennial plant with numerous filamentous stems from 5 to 50 cm in height, at the ends of which there are tiny cone-shaped inflorescences. Leaves on plants are absent or reduced to barely visible scales. Location: photophilous and very hygrophilous. They prefer slightly acidic soil. They are planted directly into the ground on a sunny swampy shore or in small containers that can be immersed up to 10 cm under water.

When grown in containers, they need monthly feeding with complex fertilizers. For the winter, containers with dangling marsh are removed to a bright, cool room. Swamps are a wonderful decoration for small ponds and streams. Cold-resistant species can be planted on low, well-humid shores or in shallow waters. More thermophilic species are grown in containers.

The grayish-bluish foliage forms a neat straight hummock 60-120 cm high. The shape changes from strictly straight at the beginning of growth to free arched in adulthood. Summer color of foliage is different: some plants are bright green, others are gray or slightly bluish, often with a noticeable purple tint. In autumn, the plant color changes from yellow-brown to copper-orange. The flowers - elongated spikelets located at the top of the stem - are invisible until they dry, then they become silvery and especially attractive when illuminated by the autumn or winter sun. They are good all winter, even when it snows.

Frost resistant. It requires full sun and good drainage to grow successfully. Tolerates even extremely dry soils, grows on both acidic and alkaline, but, of course, does not mind fertile and good moisture. Propagated by seed or dividing in spring.

Or Indian forest grass, tall prairie grass - Sorghastrum nutans. Indian grass was originally used as high quality forage, and several cultivars were obtained for this purpose, but among them were quite decorative. Panicles are good for cutting.

Gives abundant self-seeding. Thanks to this, it is used to restore prairies and create natural gardens. In small gardens, the merch is unpleasant due to self-seeding. An annual effort is required to remove annual seedlings, this is best done in late fall or early spring.

Herbaceous perennial, shoots-forming, 60-90 cm high and 30-60 cm wide. Dark green, glossy, needle-thin, tough leaves. The flowers are pinkish; in the fall they turn the plant into a pink or purple cloud. This cloud turns light brown in late autumn. One of the most beautiful herbaceous perennials. Average winter hardiness - up to (-18). In the southern regions it winters without shelter, in the north-west with shelter.

Perennial. Height up to 60 cm. Rich, copper-bronze, thin leaves are formed on a bush of sedge "Red Rooster" - one of the most popular series of ornamental grasses. Crested and erect form at the beginning of growth, eventually turning into a more drooping one. Linear leaves curl as they grow older, the tips are thin, gracefully bend in the wind.

Sedge "Mists of the Amazon" (Carex albula Amazon Mist)

Perennial. Height 25-30 cm. Lush, drooping bush. The foliage is silvery green on the top and green on the bottom, slightly curling. Great offer for retaining walls, mixborders and container compositions.

Overwinters in southern regions, in northern regions it is used as a tub or annual plant.

At this place, many may be surprised, because it is believed that millet pogonatherum (Pogonatherum paniceum) is a house plant, often even called "indoor bamboo" or "indoor reed". But in fact, this is a cereal, it belongs to the bluegrass family and is used for planting in tubs and large containers. In the summer, it is quite possible to decorate the vastness of the garden with pots with pogonaterum, and in a warmer area, and leave it to overwinter in the ground.

In our latitudes, it can be cultivated in the south of Russia, although the summer of 2014 was hot in the middle lane. With such a temperature regime, the pogonaterum feels good not only during the day, but also at night.

One of the varieties of the setaria (Setaria italica) is a common plague, which is grown in some regions as a fodder plant. But not everyone knows that it is also very decorative. Chumiza has large yellowish or green drooping panicles that look great in plant ensemble and solo.

The second variety of setaria is known to us as mohar, or bristle, it has smaller brownish panicles, growing straight.

Setaria bushes are large, sometimes even higher than 1 m. This decorative grain loves warm and fertile soils. Resistant to drought, but loves watering just as much sun and fertility. The plant has won the love of designers of dry bouquets, as it dries perfectly and does not crumble. And in a cut with other plants it will look no less original.

Maned barley

Maned barley (Hordeum jubatum) is said to be dignified and playful. In my opinion, it is more than self-sufficient in the world not only of cereals, but also of many ornamental plants. It is a perennial, but more often it is cultivated as an annual because of its property to freeze in winter. This decorative cereal forms dense bushes up to 50 cm tall with a scattering of shoots, on which inflorescences-spikelets with very long awns are located.

At the time of flowering, the awns are pink-purple, and when they dry up, they become white. Under good conditions, maned barley not only does not freeze, but also gives excellent self-seeding.

Pennisetum bristly forms bushes up to 1.5 m, depending on the subspecies. The long stems have bright inflorescences that resemble fireworks.This plant is very effective in combination with evergreen spruces or pines.

Another handsome man from the pennisetum family is gray-gray pennisetum, he is also American pinnate, he is also African millet. The decorative appearance has a straight, dense panicle and leaves of brown-purple or bluish color. African millet is thermophilic, but tolerates lower temperatures well. It can be used both in mixborders and in group plantings.It is very beautiful when cut, and the dried plant perfectly retains its shape and color.

This cute cereal truly lives up to its name: its small fluffy inflorescences really look like the tail of a bunny. A haretail, aka ovoid lagurus (Lagurus ovatus), can reach a height of just over 50 cm, the spike-shaped inflorescences themselves are about 3-4 cm long.

We are loved by many gardeners not only for elegance, but also for high decorative qualities in dry compositions. This plant can grow in partial shade, which makes it possible to plant it in places where other ornamental grasses cannot grow.

A very original annual cereal has inflorescences in the form of an unusual dark brown loose spike with round grains. Sorghum leaves are wide, dark green, their spacing also gives some unusualness to the plant.

It is used both in group plantings and singly, as a background and for spectacular winter compositions. Sorghum tolerates cold well and is not demanding on the soil.

Viviparous oat (Helictotrichon sempervirens) is often confused with blue fescue. Confused by the color and somewhat similar shape, but the sheep's tussocks are much higher and more spreading. Tthis cereal not only perfectly frames flower beds, but also goes well with all kinds of stones.

Hasmantium broadleaf

Hasmantium broadleaf (Chasmanthium latifolium), or wild oats, or flatgrass, despite its apparent simplicity, looks very original with many plants and in single plantings. The inflorescences and spikelets of this cereal are flattened and located in the same plane. They hang from the stem like outlandish wrought-iron earrings.

With good humidity and sufficient sunlight, it grows about 1.2 m in height. It begins to bloom in autumn, in September - October.

The brightness of this cereal will not leave indifferent even the most picky gardener. The leaves of the cylindrical imperata (Imperata cylindrica) are thin, with bright red tips. By autumn, it reaches the peak of its decorative effect and is completely painted in crimson tones.

The most decorative species of the genus, has long been cultivated in Western Europe as a border or lawn plant, but is especially suitable for dry bouquets. Reaches the greatest decorative effect in full sun.

Winter annual, usually highly branched from the base, 20-60 cm tall.

Zoisia thin-leaved(Zoisia tenuifolia)

Perennial, but in Russia often dying for the winter plants 5 - 20 cm tall, with creeping and rooting in the nodes of aerial shoots, bearing very numerous leaves with very narrow, folded along the plates.

Cultivated in the USA and many other countries as a lawn plant. It usually does not bloom in Russia.A promising ornamental plant for the south of Russia.

Zubrovka southern (Hierochloe australis (Swartz))

A plant with beautiful silvery panicles and a pleasant smell due to the presence of coumarin. Deserves to be grown for dry bouquets in temperate zones. Prefers light sandy and sandy loam soils.

Plants 20-50 cm in height, forming loose turf, with short creeping rhizomes.

Forest short-legged (Brachypodium sylvaticum)

It grows in height from 40 to 180 cm, depending on the shape. Forms sod. The stems are straight, shaggy at the nodes, the leaves are dark green, dense, flat. The inflorescence is spicate, 7-15 cm long. Grows in shady places. It is used as a groundcover in landscape compositions. Propagated by seeds.

A perennial, but we grow it as an annual ornamental grass.Forms a compact bush 50-60 cm high.

The ideal location for this plant is sunny, the soil is fertile and well-drained. The bead looks best in group plantings or as a curb plant.

Ornamental grasses can be selected for all tastes, for all styles of gardens and for any location. The game of different heights, different inflorescences and shades encourages new ideas for garden design. Cushion-like, overhanging or growing grasses - if you wish, you can find the desired type and variety of any shape. Ornamental grasses are surprisingly hardy and easy to care for. They grow well even in an environment where other plants simply cannot exist due to harsh conditions.

The appearance of decorative grasses allows them to blend well with different landscape objects, with different garden styles. There are many gardening "ideas" with herbs and grains.

The most popular among them is the ornamental herb and cereal garden.

Rules for the composition of ornamental grasses and cereals

There will be an original fashionable flower garden, but not from perennial flowers. For the device of this garden, many different cereals will be required, so that they differ in the shape of the curtain, height, shades of foliage, and have different inflorescences.

It is necessary to plant decorative grasses 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 cereals must be sunny, open and such that you can clearly see.

Ornamental grasses and cereals are planted in curtains to each other, as a rule, they are not decorated with bright decorative elements, several beautiful boulders or decorative dumping will fit well into such a "garden".

How to plant ornamental grasses and cereals

To create your own garden, you need to stock up on seedlings of different types of cereals. Some can be purchased in nurseries, and rare, you can grow yourself from seeds. Ornamental cereals in pots are first placed in the place chosen for the garden in order to choose a good arrangement, and then taken out of the pots and planting.

It is necessary to give value to the size of the curtains in a mature state, as well as their height. It is recommended to make gaps equal to the height of certain cereals between plantings of ornamental grasses.

A garden of ornamental grasses and cereals can be on its own, then they must be perceived as a specific object and placed according to the same rules as rock gardens or flower beds.

You can put a mini gazebo, pergola or archway. Place 1-2 large boulders nearby and arrange an iridarium. And near the gazebo there may be a cereal garden, which you add with a stone figurine, and put a beautiful snag.

Features of ornamental grasses and cereals

Perennial grasses are unpretentious, but they still have some features: not all of them are planted in a permanent place. "Saplings" of some cereals should grow stronger in a small garden bed assigned to them. Seedlings planted at the germination stage in a permanent place are oppressed by other plants. They can be immediately planted only in open places where there are no other flowers in the neighborhood. But there are unpretentious grasses, and annuals, which are sown directly by seeds in open ground.

Big and small

The shape and size of the bush of ornamental cereals 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 curbs. These types of cereals go well with heathers.

Large cereals usually take center stage in a flower garden. Good partners for large cereals are mullein, dahlias, various plants with openwork foliage. Both low-growing and tall grasses are combined with conifers and shrubs of a spherical crown, for example, barberry. Some types of herbs are distinguished by bright decorative features that require a special environment.

For example, the dark foliage of the "Nigrescens" ophiopogon is effective only against a light background, while the shoots of the "Spiralis" variety are lost in the vicinity of flowering plants. Such cereals are best supplemented with stones, or planted singly in flowerpots.