Need ornamental grass advice

I recently purchased some ornamental grasses - very root bound - at Costco. There are 5 distinctive separate plants in each huge pot. Miscanthus, and Saccharum are the two species in question.

Is it wise to divide and repot them at this time, or would I be wiser to wait for spring? I am concerned that they are so crowded. I "could" just repot the entire mess into one larger pot - but it seemed as if as long as I was doing it that I could separate them, as well.

One pot has been done - 3 more are waiting the wisdom of the group. I will set the pots - into the ground to afford some root protection in the event our winter is wild and wooly.

Thank you for any PNW recommendations. If no one here has recommendations, I will link this question into the bamboo/grass forum. However, I prefer to get answers from folks in same zone.

I just went to a grass seminar on Saturday - the speakers were from Wind Poppy Farm up north by Bellingham, where they grow LOTS of grasses.
This very question was posed - the recommendation being that any warm seasons grasses should be divided in the Spring; cool season grasses are ok to do in the Fall. The designation they receive (warm or cool) is entirely dependant on when they bloom. Miscanthus are considered warm season.
However, I am all for experiments, all depending on how badly root-bound it is & the size pot it's in.
I think you will find that some grasses are not very easy to divide. So, I would water it real well, pop it out of the pot, and take a look. If its root-bound to the extreme, you will most likely have to cut with a very sharp knife, saw, or sharpened shovel blade. No I am not kidding!
How many divisions did you want to make? And how much do you want to hassle with it?

Katye - thanks SO much!!!

In that I have already split one pot - the Saccharum - I know that it can be done ....the pot was planted with 5 separate starts. The base of each is clumped tightly with room between each. The roots, of course, are entangled. I did the water thing - and then used a maddox to tease (?) the starts from each other. Rough teasing, I might add. AND I even used a box cutter - mostly to get the original pot loose.

The toughest grass I EVER struggled to even get out of the pot was a black bamboo - now THAT was root bound! I didn't even TRY to split up the pot contents - at that point, I only wanted to get it planted. 100% success with that some 15 years ago, and I have black bamboo (all over the place - LOL).

Thanks again.

i am laughing about rough teasing - I know just what this looks like. I think my neighbours thought I was trying to kill mine!!!
What about the Miscanthus? I'm curious what the roots were like... =:0)

Ms Miscanthus was much better behaved and didn't require that I mistreat her so badly!!!

there's always next year!

wanna,

You just bring some of that black bamboo to the plant swap in Lake tapps and I'll be happy to give it a good home! :)

I've found grasses (blue fescua, and miscanthus) to be pretty easy going and just about indestructable.

I had blisters after my first run in with black bamboo :0) When my parents bought their retirement home on Harstine Island two summers ago my mom gave me a 10 gallon potted black bamboo. The previous owners where gardeners, so are my parents but they wanted to put in more flowers (there where already 7 different varieties of bamboo planted throughout the property.) The previous owner had never planted the black bamboo. It was easy getting the pot in my truck at my parents, we just rolled it into the bucket of the tractor and lifted it right into the bed of the truck. Once we got it home it was a different story! My husband and I rolled it off the back of the truck and then it took four of us to move it from there!

I decided to split the plant into four and replant it in pots for the patio. Much easier said than done. It was terribly root bound. Three hours of blood, sweat, tears and alot off @#%^%#@ and I had four pieces. I had used hand pruners, vine pruners, tree loppers, root knife and finally a hacksaw. I wasn't very fond of black bamboo after that until the newly potted babies started to take off. Then I fell in love again!

I wish I could share the black bamboo - but it has a mosaic virus - and while it is fine w/ me, it makes it less lovely than it would otherwise be. The leaves are mottled w/ yellow areas in the normal green. I don't know if it is specific to this one species, or if it can contaminate others. In any event, it is a typhoid boo.

ranchierabbit - I went through the same process with my two tubs of gifted boo - nearly cut my fingers off in the process.

I have a friend who had the neighbor's bamboo encroaching in her yard. After being intimidated for a couple of years and watching it creep in, she took a jackhammer to it. LOL

Kathy

A jackhammer? No doubt she was serious...
My neighbour has bamboo along our common property line. Thankfully, he installed a 4' barrier, and in 8 years it has yet to cross the property line. I really like the sound of the rustling leaves in the wind, and, every year those leaves blow into my yard I get free mulch!