Miscanthus Giganteus

[DavidHunter2001]

Anyone have any experience with Miscanthus Giganteus. I'm looking to plant it along my trails going to my blinds and around my blinds to conceal my entry and exits. Any tips on planting and or your experience on how tall/ thick it gets.

 

[Mortenson]

Bill, Jbird, Scott, among others, will help you. It can get very tall and thick given the right situations. I've planted some 2 years in a row, but don't have a lot of knowledge on it yet. From what I've seen at my place, after taking this year off to observe, I'll probably buy some more for next year.

 

[willy]

I've planted several screens of it and it has been great for that. I planted them in one row, every 18-20 inches and in a couple other screens 2 rows, staggered 2' and 2' apart. Both were good screens after year two and after year three they were set and will only get better.

I planted the rhizomes 3-4" deep as the maple river site where I got them says to. I disked the ground on 2 of the screens and just dug holes on the other. I used gly and simazine and prowl h2o after planting. I kept the rows weed free using spot spraying herbicides and covering rows with 24d.

They have given me easy screened walks to the blinds, screened a blind itself, blocks road views, and has made the deer use the areas during daylight much more. It was one of the best investments I have made as far deer habitat management.

You might want to consider planting hybrid willows around your blind if possible as they will help with brushing it in quickly.

Im in zone 5 and get between 28 and 34" of precip a year. I've planted miscanthus in heavy clay and fertile bottom loam and it has done well in both areas.

If you do a search on it on this forum I'm sure you'll find a pile of good info.

Good luck.

 

[OakSeeds]

I like it; however, it requires some work/effort if you want top-notch benefits. One thing that worked well for me was to mulch the plants with wood chips to reduce/eliminate competition and to water regularly during the first year. By the way, the plants you see in the first photo are not MG; they are ordinary Maiden Grass (bought on sale at closeout prices) available at almost any garden center. Also note the small plant toward the right foreground of the photo; it is a volunteer ... that must have resulted from a root extention almost 2.5 feet from the likely parent plant.

 

[scott44]

I have a couple screens that I've planted double row and alternating 3' squares and over time they filled in good, the ones I plant now I plant double rows closer to 2' squares so they fill in quicker.

First screen I did I disced it and sprayed it with Gly at planting and I've never done any other spraying, now I just spray it the summer/fall before and plant into the dead thatch the next spring.

My first screen sprayed and disced I also planted a sorghum/e-wheat screen in front of it for the first couple years.
2013

2014

2015

2019

I've also planted it and put stands in it.

 

[Bill]

Disclaimer! I’m very biased when it comes to MG. My only regret is not planting more.
I tried trees and shrubs in this road screen. When that failed I found MG.
http://habitat-talk.com/index.php?threads/miscanthus-giaganteus-propagation-from-cuttings.480/

 

[OakSeeds]

As Bill's photo reveals, it does best in full sun ... can get puny and floppy with too much shade.

 

[j-bird]

Bill gave me a kick in the pants and got me started by planting cuttings. I dug 2 up earlier this year and took the rhizomes to plant a few plot/blind screens. All I can say is that they need as much sun as you can give them and they don't like wet feet. Growing from cuttings is easy...and you will find a thread on here somewhere on the subject. If I can do it...you can do it. Mine typically take 2 years to reach a decent height and then they start to fill out. I think controlling other plants near them will help as well. I am still pretty early in my MG adventure but you have to get started sometime. You can check out my property tour and scan through my little adventure with MG thus far.....It's not exciting, but it shows that if a ding-dong like me can do it....anyone can!

 

[titan23_87]

I have planted it 4 different seasons for over 8-9 years. It has done well in a variety of different applications. I have found that it still excels in wet areas. This is a lot of the areas I’ve elected to use it in where trees never could get established.

 

[Chainsaw]

Planted it six feet wide in a wet clay spot and you cannot see through it and it is an easy seven to eight ft. Tall. Super prepared the soil before planting by roto tilling and spraying with gly three times to reduce the weed seeds. There are zero weeds in it, once established it dominates the area where it stands. Additionally it stays where it is put. Can’t say enough good about it as a great screen in two to three years.

 

[TreeDaddy]

Bill gave me a kick in the pants and got me started by planting cuttings. I dug 2 up earlier this year and took the rhizomes to plant a few plot/blind screens. All I can say is that they need as much sun as you can give them and they don't like wet feet. Growing from cuttings is easy...and you will find a thread on here somewhere on the subject. If I can do it...you can do it. Mine typically take 2 years to reach a decent height and then they start to fill out. I think controlling other plants near them will help as well. I am still pretty early in my MG adventure but you have to get started sometime. You can check out my property tour and scan through my little adventure with MG thus far.....It's not exciting, but it shows that if a ding-dong like me can do it....anyone can!

As a fellow ding dong, i can attest to this

Mine are starting third year and look ready to really take off

bill

 

[Jimmy G]

How well does this do in sandy soil?

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[scott44]

How well does this do in sandy soil?

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I have really heavy clay and a buddy of mine has really light sandy soil, not beach sand but really light sandy soil and we have planted it at the same time and his seemed to do better the first couple years but after 3-4 yers there's seems to be no difference. So from what I've seen it does alright in a lighter sandy soil.

 

[Barndog56]

How well does this do in sandy soil?

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I planted a row of it in 2017 and it came up and did well in my sandy soil. So I ordered enough for a second row. Planted that row in 2018 and waited and waited. The first row from 2017 never came back up. Dug up some and I had the planting depth right. They just didn't survive the winter with -30 temps with little snow cover.

Going to wait a couple more years to see if that second row will survive long-term. Perhaps a heavy mulch would have helped protect that first row?

 

[TWIG]

Bumping an old thread.

What kind of spring maintanence is required? Do you guys burn or mow it off before spring green up?

 

[Bill]

Bumping an old thread.

What kind of spring maintanence is required? Do you guys burn or mow it off before spring green up?

This year I may mow mine. I haven't done anything in the last 5 or so years. Last time I mowed it went everywhere but there is quiet a bit of old litter under it now. you really don't have to do anything in my experience

 

[TWIG]

This year I may mow mine. I haven't done anything in the last 5 or so years. Last time I mowed it went everywhere but there is quiet a bit of old litter under it now. you really don't have to do anything in my experience

Interesting. I'll always cut the ornamental grass around my house off before it creates a mess in the winter. Wasn't sure how the reemergence would be affected.

 

[Bill]

Interesting. I'll always cut the ornamental grass around my house off before it creates a mess in the winter. Wasn't sure how the reemergence would be affected.

Yeah its messy but not in my yard so...
Actually the old shoots add to the visual barrier. New shoots just grow around them.