Not the plant you're looking for? Search over 300,000 plants

Grass Like

Miscanthus oligostachyus 'Afrika'

small Japanese silver grass 'Afrika'

A clump-forming perennial grass with olive-green leaves, up to 1.3m high, which start to turn orange and red in summer and become more intensely red by late autumn, and stems up to 1.5m high of dark brown-red flowers in late summer and autumn which which remain attractive as fluffy brown seedheads in winter

Synonyms

Miscanthus sinensis 'Afrika'

Save to My plants

Buy this plant

Plant nurseries
3 suppliers

Ultimate height

1–1.5 metres

Time to ultimate height

2–5 years

Ultimate spread

1–1.5 metres

Chalk

Clay

Loam

Sand

Moisture

Moist but well–drained

pH

Acid, Alkaline, Neutral

	Stem	Flower	Foliage	Fruit
Spring
Summer
Autumn
Winter

Full sun

Aspect

South–facing or North–facing or West–facing or East–facing

Exposure

Exposed or Sheltered

Hardiness
Hardiness ratings
All ratings refer to the UK growing conditions unless otherwise stated. Minimum temperature ranges (in degrees C) are shown in brackets
H1a: under glass all year (>15C)
H1b: can be grown outside in the summer (10 - 15)
H1c: can be grown outside in the summer (5 - 10)
H2: tolerant of low temperatures, but not surviving being frozen (1 to 5)
H3: hardy in coastal and relatively mild parts of the UK (-5 to 1)
H4: hardy through most of the UK (-10 to -5)
H5: hardy in most places throughout the UK even in severe winters (-15 to -10)
H6: hardy in all of UK and northern Europe (-20 to -15)
H7: hardy in the severest European continental climates (< -20)

Botanical details

Family: Poaceae
Native to the UK: No
Foliage: Deciduous
Habit: Tufted
Genus: Miscanthus can be deciduous or evergreen grasses with tufted or spreading habit, erect stems bearing arching, linear leaves and terminal panicles of silky spikelets in late summer or autumn
Name status: Accepted

How to grow

Cultivation

Will tolerate most conditions, but grows best in moderately fertile, moist but well-drained soil in full sun

Propagation

Propagate by division in spring or early summer, before re-growth starts

Suggested planting locations and garden types

City and courtyard gardens
Coastal
Cottage and informal garden
Prairie planting
Banks and slopes
Cut flowers
Flower borders and beds

Pruning

Cut down dead leaves and old flowered stems to just above ground level in late winter or early spring; cut stems can be left around the plants as a mulch

Pests

Generally pest-free

Diseases

Generally disease-free

Get involved

The Royal Horticultural Society is the UK’s leading gardening charity. We aim to enrich everyone’s life through plants, and make the UK a greener and more beautiful place.