Is this Giant Miscanthus?

[treeguy]

Hello, your expertise would be appreciated. My friends used to have a landscaping company and have a dumping area where they used to dump debris from their jobs. There have been 2 clumps of grass here for as long as I can remember 5+ years? This grass hasn't seemed to have spread at all, maybe other than getting wider. I was wondering if this could be Giant Miscanthus? I was looking at what I think is phragmites driving around and the seed head seems to be more brown and fuller on those.

I just got a property and was looking to screen 250 yards. That's about 1400 rhizomes, these would help save some money. Thanks!

 

[omicron1792]

Looks similar. Lots of species of miscanthus so hard to know for sure.

 

[treeguy]

Damn, I'd hate to waste time if it's the wrong stuff. Miscanthus floridulus seems to get big and be hardy here as well.

 

[Brian662]

It's definitely miscanthus. What species would be hard to tell. I've read that giganthus version is the tallest, I'd say you could use those rhizomes for your screen.

 

[omicron1792]

It's definitely miscanthus. What species would be hard to tell. I've read that giganthus version is the tallest, I'd say you could use those rhizomes for your screen.

Only thing I worry about is giant miscanthus is sterile and won’t spread from seed. Other varieties are not and can spread beyond planted rhizomes.

 

[Brian662]

Only thing I worry about is giant miscanthus is sterile and won’t spread from seed. Other varieties are not and can spread beyond planted rhizomes.

He states minimal spreading or just "getting wider" which is a trait of MG, I think he'd be pretty safe.

If it were me I wouldn't risk it because there just isn't enough there to realize much cost savings, but to each their own.

 

[Bill]

If it were me I wouldn't risk it because there just isn't enough there to realize much cost savings, but to each their own.

No doubt digging it up is work. I had a guy ask me about it yesterday. I've got an odd plant so I popped half of it up with the forks on the tractor and cut sections with a saws all. I told him plant the clumps or break it down for rhizomes. I wasn't cutting that alien looking root system apart....

Those pics are of something in the miscanthus family for sure.

 

[treeguy]

How big are the pieces when you buy them? Maybe I'll buy a couple hundred and plant both to compare. I only took out a small section and I think I could make it into 30? I would think there might be 4-500 there.

If it's definitely not phragmites and you think it's in the miscanthus family, I think it's giant miscanthus. I have a tree care company and I'm at a lot of peoples houses, I've never seen any ornamental grasses this big. This definitely was ornamental somewhere before tho, no one around here is growing it as biofuel that I've seen. I asked that landscapers where it might have came from and they have no idea how it got there.

 

[Brian662]

How big are the pieces when you buy them? Maybe I'll buy a couple hundred and plant both to compare. I only took out a small section and I think I could make it into 30? I would think there might be 4-500 there.

If it's definitely not phragmites and you think it's in the miscanthus family, I think it's giant miscanthus. I have a tree care company and I'm at a lot of peoples houses, I've never seen any ornamental grasses this big. This definitely was ornamental somewhere before tho, no one around here is growing it as biofuel that I've seen. I asked that landscapers where it might have came from and they have no idea how it got there.

From Maple River Farms you can buy clusters or individual rhizomes. So it all depends I guess. My experience is with rhizomes and they are between the size of a golf ball and a tennis ball, obviously oblong in shape, with roots and small growth sticking everywhere.

 

[Bill]

That would be a decent sized rhizome. But remember it's like warm season grass. The first year you'll get a few shoots. Then more as time goes by. By year 3 or 4 with weed control it will be a big cluster of grass.

 

[MadMadHoosier]

I have no idea, but picture this calls it…..

 

[treeguy]

I never updated. Thanks for everyones help. I was looking to buy some more miscanthus this spring. I dug up all the easy to get free stuff last. My dad cut it up and counted it (he's retired). We yielded about 600 rhizomes, so it was worth messing with. We bought a couple hundred rhizomes from Real World last year. The stuff we dug up was a lot nicer than what we got from them. Thicker rhizomes, more eyes. It came up real nice and my simazine spray held really well last year. I'm excited to see what they do this year.

Regarding the the Real World miscanthus, I seemed to have more blank spots with theirs compared to what we dug. I listen to Don Higgins podcast and he said to not worry if it doesn't come up the first year it will the second year. That seems like BS to me, but has anyone had that experience?

 

[Bill]

I listen to Don Higgins podcast and he said to not worry if it doesn't come up the first year it will the second year. That seems like BS to me, but has anyone had that experience?

Actually yes. I planted a row of rhizomes from Maple river farms one wet spring. Water laid on it for what seemed weeks and I thought it was a total failure. The next spring most of them came up. about 200 plants.

 

[treeguy]

Good to know. Thanks for the insight. Fingers crossed!