Yes, they look dried out and stressed from summer... they were probably pretty dried out when you got them, they wouldnt get that bad that quickly unless you just threw the plants on the driveway

Good news is that Miscanthus is VERY hardy... if you water them and have them in soil they will grow, so they plants can probably be saved

Bad news is that they may look like crap the rest of this year, and may not get some decent size until 2008 at least. If you want instant gratification get some nice green plants in a 5 gallon pot, nurseries have them around my area for around $20. I've gotten them and watered them often the first year and got 6 feet high Miscanthus the next year.

What bothers me is that they were perfectly green when I planted them. Just 3 days and all I have is a burned look.

I know I could wait and give them a chance. But 90 Bucks for these 5 is not worth it if it dries in 2 days. I plan to return them and get a new set (LOWES). I put some espoma plant tone when I planted them in. Could that have killed these? I find that hard to believe. We did not even have hot days when I wasnt here...

The fertilizer may have hurt them... it is said to avoid fertilizer when planting perennial plants and trees, it can stress plants out

Lowes will probably replace them anyway even this soon, most of the people working at Lowes probably have no clue what the plants are in the first place

They were newly planted and 3 days without water while standing in the sun. They couldn't run to the faucet. Their rootballs dried out. Their tops wilted.

All in all, a normal situation.

Folks

I took the old dead lookings ones back and replaced with the same. Only this time, I am keeping the root area moist by timer set watering every 4 hours for 15mins.

I still see the grass yellowing out. Atleast one of them show signs of distress. They told me these are hardy full sun tolerant ones. What is going on?

Is this normal?

Yellowing could also be a sign of too much water.. I still think it's just the shock of being replanted. Grasses are extreemly hardy.

vinny,
could you give us a little more information?
What did the root ball look like when you took it out of the pot? Was it root bound? Was there much soil or just a lot of roots?

I find many grasses purchased at this time of the year have already outgrown their pots. When I plant these I always try to loosen up the root a little bit. Then I soak the root ball in a bucket of water to make sure the whole thing is hydrated. Then I plant it and tend to it a bit like a new tree. Water the planting hole really well as you are planting. Once or twice a week water the plant deeply.
Often if the potting mix gets too dried out it is really hard to re-wet properly so, your repeated light waterings may just be watering the lawn & surrounding soil rather than the grass.

just a thought & very long winded ...... :o)

I did loosen up the rootball completely before planting. I also watered deep as well. Mistake I did was not hydrating the rootball or watering the hole before planting. Hopefully these survice and I learned my lesson.

They are still not completely dried out. We had decent rain in the last 2 days. I will continue soaking them for another month.

thanks
v

Vinny, they look to me like they will be just fine. After planting this time of year, it is not uncommon for them to show some signs of dieback. Water regularly, but don't water them too much, and do not fertilize them yet. A little mulch would probably help also. In zone 6, these should do great for you. Polly