I am weak too....and there's no shame in it. (at least I won't admit to any of it!)

I say more is better....always. $3.10 per plant...great price. Have fun with 'em! And be guilt-free!
:)

I'd be weak too if I had more space to put anything.

Pshaw! I have no space. I'll likely pot them up and grow them on until I make more beds.

The 20% off coupon got me too! I ordered a three pack of blue oat grass (along with some other stuff) to hide an access panel for the irrigation system in one of my perennial beds. I know it gets approx. 2' tall when not in bloom, but how fast will it fill in? I know Bluestones plants are usually pretty small.

I grew several clumps of Helictotrichon sempervirens from seed this year, and they got to about 8-10" tall, from early spring germination, in 3-quart nursery pots.

Guilty as charged..., I picked up seven more varieties this Summer. Now I am up to 31 stands of ornamental grasses, with a lot of large Miscanthus. For 2007, I may finally give in to my urge to get Arundo Donax 'Giant Reed'. I am just afraid that it will take over the yard. My Floridulus already punches holes through landscape fabric and sneaks under soil barriers into the lawn.

2006 New Grasses:
Miscanthus Sinensis 'Nippon'
Miscanthus Sinensis 'Graziella'
Festuca Glauca 'Elijah Blue'
Calamagrostis Arundinacea Brachytricha
Chasmanthium Latifolium 'Northern Sea Oats'
Pennisetum Orientale 'Karley Rose'
Phalaris Arundinacea 'Picta' (Ribbon Grass/Gardener's Garters)*
*This last grass looks innocent, but threatened to take over the garden. I plan to attack it before it wakes up for Spring.

"*This last grass looks innocent, but threatened to take over the garden. I plan to attack it before it wakes up for Spring."

LMAO! Drive a stake through it's heart while it sleeps.

I'm going to try some Phalaris one of these days, but it's going into a large container.

Children count days until Christmas, but I count the days until Spring. My best take from this forum last year was to put out small raised beds to foster the growth of small new additions of ornamental grasses. I placed my new starts in rich Albrecht soil balanced beds. The growth was much better than in the typical planting bed in my yard. Now I have nice starts to move into more aesthetically pleasing areas this Spring. I am looking forward to trying more new additions in a few months.

I gave in to the 20% off at Bluestone too. I ordered $200+ worth of ornamental grasses only for my hubby's birthday in April! Can't wait to get them here! Gotta get that bed ready.

I usually just lurk here, but I thought I'd stop to confess that I gave in to the Bluestone deal, too. I bought 2 more 'Sioux Blue' sorghastrum nutens because I loved the one I bought last year. (And some heuchera, and 'Purple Emporer' sedum, and, and and... lol.)

FWIW to Donn and others who have asked about how well the small Bluestone plants fill in, here are the ones that I have had experience with personally:

- Sorghastrum nutens: Planted late May 06, was about 24 in. tall with 4-5 (gorgeous coppery) flower stalks in fall 06. (Came in approx. 1 qt. container)

- 'Hameln' Pennisetum: Planted late fall 05, moved in early summer 06, was about 10 in. tall and 14 in. wide with almost 2 dozen flower stalks in fall 06. (Came in a Bluestone 3-pack)

- 'The Blues' Little Bluestem: Planted late fall 05, moved in early summer 06 and again in late summer 06 (I know, I'm bad), was cut to about 12in. tall at second move and got about 6 inches wide at the top by fall 06. (Came in a Bluestone 3-pack, but I don't see it on their site anymore?)

- Carex buchanii: Planted in a container in early June 06, moved in late summer to a spot in the garden bed, got about 12in. tall and 8in. wide at the top--and was very full. (Came in a Bluestone 3-pack.)

- 'Frosted Curls' Carex comans: Planted in the ground in early June 06, 1 plant moved in midsummer but all 3 plants got about 6-8in. tall and 10in. wide by fall 06. (Came in a Bluestone 3-pack.)

Note: those growing the types of carex in their preffered moist/clay conditions might have had better results than I did... I admit that I am pushing it, trying to grow these guys in sandy soil!

blackswamp..I'm having no trouble at all with Carex in very sandy soil. I have zero clay, and at least 50% sand, and, so far, I have C. muskingumensis, C. grayii, C. comans and a couple of unknown Carex volunteers flourishing. If I give in to the urge, I'll be ordering lots more Carex seed from Jelitto before too long.

Don, really? You have no idea how excited I am--when I read that, my heart made this funny jump in my chest. (I'm a goof, I know.) I've wanted to plant c. muskingumensis ('Little Midge' from PDN is short enough to be perfect for a certain spot in my garden) for a couple of years now but thought it would be too thirsty in sandy soil! Can you tell me a little more about it? Do you have to do some extra watering or just mulch with some compost, etc.?

swamp..my Carex are all grown from seed (So far..I recently bought a few plugs of 'Ice Dance'). I got the C. muskingumensis from Jelitto, and have been collecting their seed since. I,ve started several new ones every year, because I love the plant. I even sold a few last year.

Once they are past seedling stage, they go into a nursery bed which is in full to mostly sun. The soil is a sandy loam, and I mix in compost when I plant the seedlings. The bed has a soaker hose buried about 3" deep, and is mulched with shredded pine matter; cones, needles etc..

After a season in the nursery bed, or when they're about 18" tall, I transplant them to permanent spots in the garden. Same treatment...I backfill the planting hole with compost mixed with sandy loam. They usually get a drip irrigation fixture in the garden, so I can control the amount of moisture they get.

In the past, I've always grown them in clumps, using several seeds to a cell. This year, I'm going to start growing them individually, to see if I can isolate plants with different characteristics, like dwarf size, or color differences.

Thank you so much for the wonderful information, Don. I might have to investigate the seed possibilities now that you mention it.

Just a note to blackswamp girl.
There are over a 1000 different species of Carex not to mention all the cultivars. So, there is probably a carex to fit any condition in your garden.
I personally grow about 16 Carex spp. in my garden which is predominantly 'improved' sandy soil. Actually, in my garden, if you dig down below the topsoil level you come to a very deep layer (several feet) of pure yellow sand - not a bit of loam in site!
As for Carex muskingumensis - it seems to do well in my sandy garden soil but, doesn't thive under the same conditions that Schizachyrium scoparium (little blue stem) would handle, ie very poor soil, very dry conditions.

That said, I do have a couple of Carex that prefer a moist site - which I give them in my 'fake' damp garden.
If you have dry sandy soil and a shady site you might also give the Luzula's a try. They are the champions of these conditions

Little bluestem loves me! (And I admit, I'm rather fond of it, too. *g*) I was planning to give the carex a shadier site to help compensate for the lack of moisture retention in my soil... so I will have to check out the Luzula's as well. Thanks, achnatherum!