Whenever anyone asks what is my favorite plant, of course, I can never answer.
I usually have at least 3 or 4 plants that are my favorite on any given day.
This could include the first plant I come across in the garden and the ones I read about at night.
If push came to shove, I could produce a list of my favorite plants of all time.
Near the top of my list would be the fantastic, native grass, Muhlenbergia capillaris. Or, as it is commonly known – hairy-awn muhly or the fabulous pink muhly grass.
Muhlenbergia capillaris – Pink Muhly grass
I first came across this muhly grass back in the late 90s while working at Plant Delights Nursery.
We were expanding the gardens into a new property, and we planted one entry point with Muhlenbergia capillaris en masse.
This grass is made for large installations and mass planting.
When planted in a group, the effect of the reddish-pink flowers is more dramatic. Hairy-awn muhly will mature at 2-3′ tall and wide. In late summer into early fall, the gorgeous flowers and seed heads are borne above the foliage.
White Pink Muhly Grass
Large installations of highlight he dramatic reddish-pink flowers.
Muhlenbergia capillaris
images from texasgardeninginfo.com, land8.com
Muhlenbergia capillaris is native from Connecticut over to Texas, and some selections are hardy up here at Coastal Maine Botanical Garden (zone 6a).
I was relieved when I saw it growing here as it is truly the one ornamental grass I would want in the garden. If you plan on growing it (which I recommend you do), be sure to grow this fantastic grass in full sun and in well-drained soils.
Hairy-awn muhly will take a few years to establish if you plant it as a small plant. It will go dormant in the winter, but given the proper growing conditions, it will come back larger each year until it reaches full size.
I am not sure why more people do not use Muhlenbergia capillaris where they can, but I, for one, hope you will try it in your garden this year.
– Rodney
Rochelle’s Notes on Pink Muhly
If push came to shove, I suppose I, too, could produce a list of favorite plants of all time – and it would change daily. But I think I’d have to qualify them as my favorite plants to look at and be inspired by – and my favorite plants that I can actually grow.
As a zone 5/6 New Englander, Pink Muhly Grass annoyingly sits in between these two lists.
Technically, I live in Zone 6 – but before the last USDA hardiness zone map change, I was in Zone 5. The reality is that I really can’t act too confidently about anything that is only happy to zone 6, and Pink Muhly grass is that. I’ve planted dozens of plants in a variety of locations around my garden, and I think only 2 or 3 have survived. My success rate is wildly inconsistent, and none of the persisting plants have yet to thrive.
I have yet to see even a tiny whisper of the frothy pink clouds of foliage that I covet.
I have two more full sun spots where I am considering growing it – but the soil is heavy and often wet (it has a fair amount of clay) in one of them. Pink Muhlygrass likes moist to dry soil. The other has rocky soils and is the closest thing I have to a pine barren (Pink Muhly is native to pine barrens). I suspect if I am going to have any luck – it will be in the second spot. I’ll let you know how it goes.
And if it’s not perennial in your area…plant it as a show stopping, fall blooming annual. A 3gal may cost 2x what you’d pay for that 10″ mum, but it will look great for months instead of weeks. The list of plants that are more attractive than Muhly when backlit is very, very short. Great pick, Rodney!