tall ornamental grasses for privacy

Zebra Grass (Miscanthus sinensis ‘Zebrinus’)

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Plants with variegated foliage—foliage with a multicolored pattern—are quite popular among gardeners. The foliage of zebra grass can add both visual interest and privacy to your landscape. Under the right conditions, zebra grass can reach its lush 5- to 8-foot potential with a 4- to 6-foot spread. Its clumping habit makes it ideal to grow as a hedge. Water zebra grass regularly until it’s established. Then, it likely will only need watering during an extended dry spell. Moreover, the plant can benefit from a layer of compost each year.

• • USDA Hardiness Zones: 5 to 9
  • Sun Exposure: Full sun
  • Soil Needs: Moist, well-draining, neutral pH

Hardy Clumping Bamboo (Bambusoideae)

Bamboo is a grass, albeit a very large grass. Although bamboo has a reputation for being invasive in the garden, you can control this by planting the clumping type rather than those that spread by runners. Look for bamboo plants in the Fargesia genus, which are slow-growing and cold hardy. Fargesia robusta can grow up to 17 feet tall and offer great privacy. Water bamboo enough to keep it moderately moist. Fertilizer usually isn’t necessary, but a layer of compost can promote growth. Keep in mind that all bamboo will spread and can be difficult to eradicate once established.

• • • USDA Hardiness Zones: 5 to 9
    • Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
    • Soil Needs: Rich, moist, well-draining

Pampas Grass (Cortaderia selloana)

The tender variety of pampas grass, Cortaderia selloana, can be invasive in mild climates. It grows in clumps that can reach 8 to 12 feet tall with a 4- to 6-foot spread for privacy in the garden. This grass is drought tolerant and likely will only need watering during extended dry spells once it’s established. Fertilizer also usually isn’t necessary. You can find a hardier version of this plant in Saccharum ravennae, also known as plume grass or ravenna grass, which grows in zones 5 to 9.

• USDA Hardiness Zones: 8 to 10
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Soil Needs: Dry to medium moisture, well-draining

• • USDA Hardiness Zones: 5 to 9
  • Sun Exposure: Full sun
  • Soil Needs: Rich, moist, tolerates clay

Feather Reed Grass (Calamagrostis x acutiflora)

Feather reed grass has thick bunches of tall, slender, green leaves around 3 feet long. Summer flower spikes are pinkish-purple and fluffy. It reaches 5 feet tall and 2 feet wide. Grass, particularly the famous ‘Karl Foerster’ variety, requires above-average rainfall. Feather reed grass also tolerates slow-draining clay soil. This grass is a low-maintenance, medium-height, shade-tolerant screening plant for rain gardens. This grass needs frequent irrigation since it likes damp soil. To encourage growth, prune the plant in autumn or spring.

Big Bluestem (Andropogon gerardii)

• This North American native plant is a great choice for a privacy screen, growing to about 6 feet tall with a 2- to 3-foot spread. If you had lived in the Midwest 200 years ago, you would have seen large swaths of big bluestem covering most of the prairie with its bluish-green tint in the spring and summer. Neither deer nor drought​ can faze this tough grass. Plant it in a sunny spot, and it will adapt to a range of soil conditions. Water young plants regularly. Established plants are fairly drought tolerant and don’t usually need watering.

  • USDA Hardiness Zones: 4 to 9
  • Sun Exposure: Full sun
  • Soil Needs: Average, dry to medium moisture, well-draining

Pink Hair Grass (Muhlenbergia capillaris)

Pink hair grass, or pink muhly grass, is another native beauty that gardeners can grow with little effort. The grass tops out at about 3 to 4 feet, making it perfect for a patio edging that provides some screening for a seating area. Showy pink flowers appear in September and linger to give the garden some winter interest. Pink hair grass tolerates lean soil and dry conditions and can help to ease erosion on slopes. When given consistent moisture, the plant can grow taller. Plus, planting it in a sheltered area in a raised bed can stretch the northern limit of its growing zone.

• • • USDA Hardiness Zones: 5 to 9
    • Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
    • Soil Needs: Sandy or rocky, dry to mild moisture, well-draining

Fountain Grass (Pennisetum alopecuroides)

Fountain grass adds privacy and visual interest to a landscape, thanks to its fuzzy catkins (flowering spikes). This plant does best in full sun, though it can tolerate some shade. And its foliage usually remains attractive through winter. It grows in clumps that are around 3 to 5 feet in both height and spread. Some dwarf cultivars exist, so check the plant tag if you want to use it for a privacy screen. Water a young plant once or twice a week until it’s established. You likely won’t have to water mature plants unless you don’t get occasional rain. Fertilizer isn’t necessary, but it can boost growth.

• USDA Hardiness Zones: 6 to 9
• Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
• Soil Needs: Average, medium to wet

• • • USDA Hardiness Zones: 5 to 9
    • Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
    • Soil Needs: Average, medium to wet

Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum)

Switchgrass, another North American native, with swinging feathery pinkish-purple flower plumes and green leaves that turn copper in the autumn. It thrives in dry and wet circumstances. In rich soil, grass may fail. Unless your soil is nutrient-deficient, fertilizer is unnecessary. Its 3–6-foot height and 2- to 3-foot spread provide modest garden seclusion. Switchgrass provides winter birds with oil-rich seeds.

New Zealand Flax (Phormium tenax)

New Zealand flax is perfect for seclusion since its strap-like leaves are wider than fountain grasses. The plant grows up to 12 feet tall and spreads approximately 4 feet wide, with spiky, sword-like leaves in green, red, copper, or yellow. It grows nicely in pots for seclusion. New Zealand flax doesn’t care about light, soil, or water. Plant it early spring in protected regions.

• • USDA Hardiness Zones: 8 to 10
  • Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
  • Soil Needs: Medium to rich moist, well-drained soil

Chinese Silver Grass (Miscanthus sinensis ‘Morning Light’)

One of the most popular grasses, Miscanthus sinensis, grows large, feathery, and tall but does just as well in the ground as it does in containers which can be moved around for privacy where needed. Plant Chinese silver grass about 4 feet apart in the ground and they will grow the perfect size to hide fences. Its huge silvery-tinged plumes can grow up to 7 or 8 feet tall—sometimes it can grow as high as 14 feet in a single season—to provide lots of screening. The plant’s airy growth habit has a softening, yet brightening effect in a garden, thanks to variegated green and white striped leaves. Plant in full sun where the soil is fertile and moist. This perennial does best when cut back in the spring before new growth arrives.

• • • USDA Hardiness Zones: 3 to 9
    • Sun Exposure: Full sun
    • Soil Needs: Medium-moisture, well-drained soil