Sesleria argentea

Sesleria argentea is a small perennial grass species with a dense, erect, very neat tuft of fine evergreen, light green foliage, pale greenish-yellow in full sun. Short and narrow, silver-white spikes rise above the bright leaves all summer, turning brown as they dry. These are long-lived, hardy grasses, tolerant of the driest situations. Use it to create dry meadows in a natural garden or on a green roof, or for enhancing rockeries. Plant it in poor, well-drained soil, in full sun or partial shade.

Seslaria argentea is a perennial, tufted and non-spreading grass, belonging to the poaceae family, hardy down to -25°C (-13°F). In nature, it is found in southeastern Europe and North Africa, around the Mediterranean basin, even in very harsh winter areas. The plant forms a thick, dense, and bristly clump of linear and rough foliage, reaching 60 cm (24in) in all directions when flowering. Its tapering, pointed leaves, 3 to 5 mm (0in) wide partially dry out before winter, but are continuously renewed. Fairly stout, silver-white to cream-white flower spikelets, appear from May to August, capturing the light.

Sesleria plants are not spectacular, but they give permanence with colourful foliage in winter, and rustic charm with their airy flowers from spring to summer. Sesleria argentea is highly adaptable and non-invasive, thriving north and south, in plains and mountains, on the coast or in rocky areas. It is beautiful in its simplicity, with many perennials such as lavender, catananche, coreopsis, autumn asters, chrysanthemums, echinacea, small sunflowers, and many more. Planted en masse in a natural garden, it forms a good ground cover, even in partial shade or under trees, with small periwinkles, lungworts, and buglosses.