I have about 100 rhizomes of Miscanthus Giganteous that I have set aside for trading purposes this year, since my experience trading them last year was so positive. I would like to try Hellebores this year if anybody has them. I am also open to other plants, especially shrub roses that are disease resistant. We belong to the Old German Baptist Brethren Church, which does not allow Internet at home at this time to our members (mostly to protect our children and way of life). This means that for us to see our Dmail we have to go to the library or have a friend print them out and give them to us, so please be patient if it takes us a few days to get back with you. We do allow telephones, fax machines, and answering machines-my number is 785-204-3110 if you want a more prompt answer to a question. We also signed up for a new service that converts emails to a fax, and allows us to fax a handwritten note back to you (which is then converted to text and then sent as an email). A Mennonite friend of ours told us about the service, and it does seem to work. If you want to contact us that way, the email is funplants#pcfreemail.com (replace the # with the @ symbol).
There are several crosses of giant grass out there in cyberspace-ours is a cross between Chinese Silver grass and an unnamed miscanthus native of the midwest. Ours was imported from Germany in 2000, where it is grown and harvested to be burned along with coal (it cost us $300 to import two pounds of tubers). Ours has never set seed that we know of, is upright and clump forming, and grows to about 14+ feet with an upright, pink plume in October. We grow it here in Kansas with no winter protection in zone 5 and have never had any die over the harsh winters here. It is a warm season grass, which means that it doesn't start to grow until the soil is about 75 degrees (last week in May for us in Kansas), but it grows quickly once it sprouts. We originally bought it to make a maze in the backyard for the kids-it certainly does a good job of that. These make a great hedge (6 feet tall the first year, 10 feet the second year, and it just goes on from there). There are several cultivars of this grass all called "Giant" and 'Miscanthus Floridulus"-ours has a pinkish, upright plume compared to the more common one that has a silvery, more floppy plume. Another plus about the variety we have, is that it doesn't take a backhoe to remove (like the silver plumed one does) if later you decide to move it. It enjoys moderate watering during the heat of August here until it gets established in a few years. If you want a tight hedge, figure on one section of root for every three feet. In about 3 years they will each form a beautiful "fountain" of grass, about three feet across at the base. Some folks in Germany plant rudbeckia around the base of this grass, and neither of the two plants seem to suffer from the competition. For a head start on the season, you may choose to plant these in pots indoors and set them in a sunny window. Otherwise, plant the rhizomes directly in the ground about 2 inches deep.
Shadeguy (Matthew)
