How to Grow Fall Panicgrass

Overview

Fall panicgrass, known botanically as panicum dichotomiflorum, is a summer annual grass that grows in and around marsh lands and moist prairie or waste lands. It is one of at least 70 panicgrass varietals identified as growing in the United States and Canada. While considered by some to be an invasive weed, fall panicgrass is also desirable by some as a naturalized ornamental grass grown for its light green color, sweeping habit and prominent seed heads.

Step 1

Collect ripe seed heads of fall panicgrass, or carefully dig up the rooted corms in summer. Excavate a wide circle around the corm with a hand trowel, scooping up a clump of soil containing the panicgrass tops, corm, roots and surrounding soil. Lift the excavated clump of soil intact and place standing up in a waterproof container. Keep the roots and grass moist until you transplant it into the ground at its new location. Harvest the panic grass as close as you can to the time of transplant and try to replant within 24 hours at the outside. Release seeds from mature seed heads by shaking in a sealed jar or rubbing the seed heads gently while sealed in a plastic bag.

Step 2

Prepare the soil bed by tilling it up to loosen and aerate the soil. Amend the soil with compost, peat moss or aged manure if in very poor condition and till it in well. Replant the corms in the loosened soil so that the entire root ball is unrestricted in its hole and press the soil gently around the roots. Sow the seeds onto the soil and cover only lightly and partially as germination will be sped by sunlight. Leaving future seed heads to mature on their stalks, fall panicgrass with readily self sow in the summer.

Step 3

Water in the panicgrass corms or seeds deeply and maintain evenly moist soil especially around the seeds through germination by irrigation or rainfall or some combination thereof. Depending on your climate the seed will germinate in roughly 90 days.