Sesleria Autumnalis 1Gal

Latin Name: Sesleria autumnalis

Common Name: Autumn Moor Grass

Zones: 4–9

Height & Spread: 8–18 inches tall, spreading 8–18 inches wide (up to 24 inches tall in bloom)

Descriptive Features: A neat, densely tufted, semi-evergreen European grass and Royal Horticultural Society Award of Garden Merit recipient, valued as one of the best small-scale groundcover grasses for four-season interest. Forms tidy, arching mounds of narrow, V-shaped, lime-green to chartreuse foliage that stays fresh and attractive from spring through much of winter. In mid to late summer, slender, upright flower spikes rise above the foliage, giving way in autumn to lax, silvery-white inflorescences that hover elegantly over the clump — the source of its common name, as it flowers unusually late for a cool-season grass — before maturing to golden-tan seed heads that persist through winter. Tolerant of a wide range of soils including clay, sand, and alkaline conditions, and adaptable to urban environments, black walnut proximity, and salt exposure. Drought-tolerant once established, though it can struggle in extreme summer heat and humidity. Reliably clump-forming and rarely self-seeds in the garden, unlike many other grasses. Deer-resistant, low-maintenance, and excellent used as a groundcover matrix, mass planting, edging, or in rock gardens and perennial borders, in full sun to part shade.