My favorite way to plant shop is to forgo any sort of planning and just buy what I like. I prefer to “act now and think later”.
Who cares if there isn’t room for these plants (there is always room)?
Who cares if they may be pushing the zone that they survive in (I’ll take extra care of them, I swear)?
Who cares if they kind of look like they’re dead at all times (Just another piece of the proverbial garden puzzle)?
So there I was slumming it at Home Depot (I kid) a few years ago trying to ignore the hundreds of impatiens and begonias, hoping I could find some semi-unique plant that I could waste my money on.
And like an oasis in the desert, I spotted a bunch of oddly colored grasses hidden in a corner amongst empty containers and dying plants.
Upon closer inspection, the grasses were kind of cool in an offbeat way and I sort of dug their color. Turns out they were Carex (sedge) ‘Cappuccino’ (awesome name):
Without giving it much thought or reading the plant labels, I threw five in my cart and hurried to the check-out booth before I could second guess my purchase.
When I got home, I did a little internet research and while there wasn’t a ton of info out there, I did discover:
- Survives in zones 6 (or 7 on some sites) to zone 9
- Prefers full sun to partial shade
- Gets to be about 18″ tall and 24″ wide
- Requires moist soil (like most sedge)
At the time, I thought, OK, they may not survive the winter here in zone 6B but I gave it a shot. They held up well for a year in a protected spot with full sun but I didn’t like how they looked in mass. So I moved them to a bed along my driveway where I strategically placed them hoping to create rhythm and repetition (who do I think I am?).
They are still there to this day:
I love this “grass” (technically I don’t think it is a true grass) and its color, texture and mounding shape. And they provide that sought after “year round interest”.
I have some Ajuga ‘Chocolate Chip’ in front of them and the color scheme is pretty cool when the ajuga are in bloom:
As the spring turns to summer, the carex turn in to good looking wispy mounds of awesomeness:
When the sun hits them just right, you can see their reddish copper color emerge:
As the cold weather and frost hits in the fall/winter, they keep their form and still look phenomenal:
And that my friends is the story of how an obsessive and neurotic gardener created a lifetime of love with a little known plant who was toiling in obscurity at a big box store.
So remember, your lesson for today is to “just buy what you like” and figure it all out later.
Life’s to short to be planning all the time.
John
I like them where you have planted them. They provide a lovely contrast with the greens of all the other plants, as well as different texture!
Beautiful in all seasons – what a great plant! I share your plant buying philosophy and my overplanted garden shows it.
I am loving the grasses this time of year. I saw a Carex yesterday called Prairie Fire, looks similar to this one but is hardy in zone 5.
Eileen
Love the color and where you’ve put them – they are obviously very happy in your zone 6B. I’m guessing I should troll my 2 local big box hardware stores this weekend – who knows what gem I might find.
I’m glad this article is still here. I bought a couple of these cappucinos today, on a whim. I have mostly shaded areas to plant, but I just didn’t want to leave these coppery cool grasses. They were on sale 1/2 off, and I really didn’t know if they were half dead, but given their name, decided maybe they were supposed to be brownish (left my phone in the car – I may do that from now on).
It does me know good to plan what I will plant. I don’t know enough about what’s out there yet, and even when I think I’ve found something online that would suit a spot that needs to be filled (yes, I said NEEDS), I just lose focus on the plan when I get in the garden centers and nurseries. I gravitate toward what I like, and when I can’t just leave it, my ignorance and naivete leave plenty of room for optimism. I’m glad I’m not the only one foolish enough to just buy what I want and try to make it work.
Yours looked really nice by the gravel. I’m glad you posted a picture, and I hope they and you are still thriving 3.5 years later now, according to post date. I’m going to steal your idea anyway, and put mine by a crush-n-run parking spot off my driveway. The shade garden will just have to wait…again.
Jen – thanks so much for reaching out! Truth is, all of my capp grasses died a few years back, most likely due to the winter temps since the grass is borderline to zone 6 here in NJ. However, I did buy a few more last year and have attempted to grow them again and hopefully I’ll have some new pics soon. Love the idea of them near gravel and I do love the color even if so many others disagree.