Karley Rose Oriental Fountain Grass

An easy to grow, soft textured fountain grass, Pennisetum ‘Karley Rose’ will give you months of light pink blooms that are great for floral arrangements and beautiful accents in the garden, but aren’t attractive to deer.

This Pennisetum is more cold hardy than the straight species (Pennisetum orientale) and blooms earlier than other varieties like ‘Hamelyn’. The rose-pink blooms appear in early summer and continue on until frost. Once the blades and blooms dry out to an autumnal tan, the silhouette remains pretty in the frost of winter. Cut this grass back in early spring, as new growth begins to emerge. Aside from that, there is no special care for this drought tolerant, deer resistant grass.

When in bloom, ‘Karley Rose’ tops out at about 3′ tall and 24-30″ wide. ‘Karley Rose’ is easy to divide, to create a graceful, massed effect in your garden. It looks great backlit by early morning or late afternoon sun and pairs nicely with Sedums, Echinaceas and other large-flowered perennials. Full sun or light shade and well-draining soil is best – the one thing ‘Karley Rose’ doesn’t like is wet, boggy soil.