Emerald Coast Growers

 

Refining & Redefining the Grass Garden with Miscanthus 'Gold Bar' and 'Gold Breeze'

 

A cursory glance at the descriptions of these two fine grasses might lead you to think they're interchangeable. But while 'Gold Bar' and 'Gold Breeze' share certain traits, they definitely didn't come from the same mold. Each is, in essence, a scaled-down (but not downscale) version of a different, larger, older variety.

 

'Gold Breeze' resembles a restrained, refined 'Zebrinus', a designer's staple for over a century. Both flaunt horizontal gold banding across their long, tapering leaves, and the graceful cascading habit is similar. But mature height of 'Gold Breeze' is shorter (5-7' with plumes), making it more adaptable to smaller spaces or container gardening.

 

'Gold Breeze' is named for its glittering dance, enhancing the very air when lightly wind-tossed. It's reliably hardy in Zones 5-9.

 

'Gold Bar' is a Mini-Me of 'Strictus'. Aside from its diminutive dimensions and vertical form, the most striking feature of 'Gold Bar' is its extraordinary variegation. Grass maven Dave Babikow, Emerald Coast Growers founder, jokingly calls it "Green Bar" -- because each blade has so much gold crosshatching, it's almost a golden leaf with green highlights. It's got more gold bars than Fort Knox.

 

'Gold Bar' is probably the slowest-growing Miscanthus, and paradoxically, that's an asset. We've yet to see it grow taller than 3', though some say it "eventually" reaches 5'. Hence, it'll stay content in its assigned space for years. In containers, alone or mixed, it really shines. In the ground, it's hardy in Zones 6-9.