Pampas Grass Care

Hi,
Help please how do I care and prune for a Pampas Grass plant please.
Thanks

 

beware of the Trifids!
the newer varieties are silver, less agressive, and smaller than the older ones.....
when the older ones dominate you will have a job to control them
i usually dig out and bin the outer shoots
pruning you won t kill them
be carefull with the leaves, they can be very sharp, not suitable where kiddies are playing

 

Many thanks,
I will take care.
Zeb

 

The leaves have inward facing barbs, so you can put your hand/arm in but when you pull it out! Paper cuts to end all paper cuts. Watch it. Been there got the scars to show for it. In February/March we cut ours down (got 9 of them by the way) to the ground with a sickle (very carefully). The removed material does NOT easily rot away on the compost heap and my shredders do not like it either. Even when dried and left over Summer the leaves can still cut. If we had room for a bonfire we would burn the leaves, but as it is we take them to the Council Recycling centre.

 

My next door neighbour in Cambridge had a whopper in her front garden and every year about bonfire night used to set fire to it as in pruning control....Please check for hedge hogs 1st and it was a sight to see in the summer wonderful plumes of grass swaying about in the breeze, Oh she was an old girl like me... :rolleyes: so new a thing or to. :D

 

Thank you all for advise will obviously take it.
Zeb

 

I grew nine from seed about 20 years ago. Over the years I have removed them until I just have one left. This year I cut it down for the first time and have been rewarded with masses of huge plumes twice the size of anything I've had before.

It is in all its glory now, towering up to 12 feet. I'll certainly cut it down again this year, probably when the plumes start to look jaded.

 

I once planted a 9cm pot of pampas grass in the top of a 4inch wide x 5ft long drainpipe filled with compost. Over the course of one season it rooted right through into the ground & formed a 'pampas palm tree'. It had a very sturdy stake to hold it up & ivy growing up the 'trunk'. Weirdly attractive. (like Mrs Tortuosa)