Muhlenbergia reverchonii Rosy - Pink muhly grass

Growing Muhlenbergia reverchonii ‘Rosy’ from seed allows you to grow this ornamental grass at a lower cost, prized for being compact and graceful and for its autumn flowering in soft pink clouds that dance atop flexible stems. With a rounded and dense habit, it forms a regular clump, ideal for gently structuring borders or enlivening a terrace in a pot. Flowering later than Muhlenbergia capillaris, it displays remarkable hardiness down to –28 °C.

Muhlenbergia reverchonii or Reverchon's Muhly belongs to the Poaceae family and is also found under the botanical name Podosemum reverchonii. The species is endemic to the semi-arid limestone areas of Oklahoma, Texas and into central Mexico. The cultivar ‘Rosy’ is a recent horticultural selection, chosen for its floral panicles of a soft pink to rosy pink, more delicate and slightly more compact than the species. This grass forms a dense, mat-like clump with a rounded habit, reaching 50–60 cm in height and up to 80 cm when in flower, with a similar spread. Its growth rate is medium to fast. The fine, thread-like (2–3 mm wide), glossy green foliage turns beige or brown in winter and may curl up, forming a dense mat on the ground. The rigid and smooth flowering stems bear open panicles 20–30 cm long in late summer to autumn, consisting of hundreds of soft pink spikelets that capture the light. Flowering extends from August to November. The root system is shallow, fasciculate, typical of mat-forming grasses, without deep roots or stolons. The species name honours Julien Reverchon (1837–1905), a French botanist who extensively collected Texan flora.

In a garden designed around light and the rhythm of the seasons, Muhlenbergia reverchonii ‘Rosy’ creates a coloured mist in autumn that dances at the slightest breeze, weaving between the warm stones of a low wall or along a gravel path. It fits well in understated scenes, where the soft, rosy hue of its inflorescences rises above matt foliage and sculptural perennials. Plant it en masse or as a punctuation with the bronze tones of Pennisetum alopecuroides ‘Hameln’, with asters or with the upright spikes of Panicum virgatum ‘Shenandoah’.