Ornamental · Poaceae
Pampas Grass
Cortaderia selloana
Little else in the garden gives you a show like a pampas grass clump in full plume, though those soft silver feathers ride on razor-sharp leaves.
Full sun
Every 7–14 days
USDA 7–10
6–12 ft · 1.8–3.7 m
Overview
Pampas grass is that tall, feather-plumed grass you often see anchoring a big border or screening a view, and it is far more forgiving than its size suggests. It comes from South America, answers to the botanical name Cortaderia selloana, and sits in the grass family. Once it has found its feet, it asks almost nothing of you, taking drought, heat, salt spray, and wind in stride.
The plumes are the reason to grow it. Each clump sends up a fountain of silver-white feathers in late summer that keep their shape well into winter, riding above arching foliage that can reach about 6 to 7 feet across. That same foliage comes with one honest catch to know about, since every blade is edged with fine, razor-sharp serrations that will cut bare skin on contact.
There is a second thing worth weighing before you plant, and it is nothing to feel bad about, just to plan around. In mild-winter regions along the Pacific coast and in Hawaii, pampas grass self-seeds into a serious invasive, crowding out native plants and feeding wildfire. Where it stays put it is a bold, low-effort feature that rewards you every year, and where it does not it is a kindness to the land to choose something else.
Care
The short version: give it full sun and well-drained ground, water it only while it is settling in, and cut the whole clump down hard each late winter, with gloves and long sleeves on every single time.
Light
Pampas grass loves full sun, and that is what lets it plume well and stand up tall and proud. It will get by in partial sun or light shade, but do not be surprised if too little light leaves the clump loose and floppy and thins out those famous feathers.
Water
Water a new plant regularly through its first season so the roots can reach down and take hold. After that it turns highly drought, heat, salt, and wind tolerant and asks for little to no extra water. Just steer clear of wet, poorly drained spots, which shorten its life and invite winter damage.
Soil
This easygoing grass takes almost any well-drained soil, whether clay, loam, sand, or rocky ground, and anything from dry to medium moisture. It also handles a wide pH span, roughly 5.5 to 8.5, so soil chemistry is rarely the thing that trips you up.
Temperature
It is tough across a broad range, from about 10°F to 100°F (-12°C to 38°C), which lines up with zones 7 through 10. Cold below that line can hurt the crown, but the heat at the top end will not bother it in the slightest.
Humidity
Ordinary outdoor humidity suits it just fine, so there is no number for you to fuss over. Air movement matters more than moisture in the air, and an open, breezy spot is exactly what this wind-tolerant grass enjoys most.
Feeding
Feed lightly with a balanced general-purpose fertilizer in spring during the growing season, and go easy. An established clump needs very little, and piling on food only pushes soft, weak growth you would rather avoid.
Pruning
Cut the whole clump back hard to about 1 to 2 feet (30 to 60 cm) in late winter, before new growth starts, using hedge shears, loppers, or power pruners. Always work in gloves, a long-sleeve shirt, and eye protection, since those serrated blades cut skin with the smallest brush.
Repotting
Pampas grass is rarely repotted and will happily live for years in one spot. Only move or divide it when it outgrows its space, the center of the clump goes dead and thatchy, or the crowded crown starts lifting out of the soil.
Size & spacing
A mature clump stands roughly 6 to 12 feet (1.8 to 3.7 m) tall and spreads about 4 to 7 feet (120 to 205 cm) wide, so give it room to be itself. Set it in plenty of open space, well clear of paths and play areas, so no one brushes those sharp leaves in passing.
When to plant
Pampas grass is a warm-region perennial happy in zones 7 to 10, and its rhythm is easy to follow. Set new plants out in spring so they can root through the growing season, enjoy the silver plumes as they rise from late summer into fall, then cut the clump right to the ground in late winter before fresh growth begins.
Northern hemisphere
Southern hemisphere
Typical months for a temperate climate: start earlier in warm zones, later where spring frosts linger.
- Plant: spring
- Harvest: late summer to fall, plumes persist into winter
Hardiness
USDA hardiness zones: 7–10
Temperature: down to -18°C
Troubleshooting
The reassuring news is that pampas grass almost never falls to a pest or a disease. Only two problems really matter, the cuts its blades can give you and its habit of spreading past its bounds, and both are simple to spot and simple to stay ahead of.
Fresh clumps popping up in spots where you never planted a thing
This is the plant's one truly troubling habit, its invasive self-seeding, so it is worth catching early rather than worrying over. A single plume can scatter well over 100,000 wind-carried seeds in one year, and even a broken piece of root or rhizome will take hold in damp soil, which is why babies show up downwind on open, coastal, or disturbed ground. The good news is that young crowns lift out easily while they are small, so dig them whole, and snip and bag the plumes before the seed ripens instead of composting them or moving seed-filled soil.
Fix:
- Remove volunteer seedlings while young by digging out the entire crown
- Cut and bag flowering plumes before seeds mature and disperse
- Do not compost plumes or move soil containing seed
Sore, stinging cuts turning up on your hands or arms after a session with the plant
Take heart, this is not a pest or a sickness you missed, it is simply the plant defending itself with its own leaves. Each blade wears fine, razor-sharp serrations that catch the skin the second you close your hand around a fistful, and the slices come thin, tidy, and deeper than you would expect. Slip on thick gloves, a long-sleeve shirt, long pants, and eye protection, and let shears or loppers do the cutting so you never have to pull the foliage bare-handed.
Fix:
- Stop handling bare-skinned and wash and dress any cuts
- Always wear thick gloves, a long-sleeve shirt, long pants, and eye protection
- Cut the clump back with hedge shears, loppers, or power pruners rather than pulling foliage by hand
Toxicity
Here is the comforting part first: no piece of pampas grass is toxic, and the ASPCA rates it safe for cats, dogs, and horses. The one real hazard is physical, since the leaf edges are razor-sharp and slice skin like paper, so handle it in gloves and gently keep pets and children from running through the clump.
Safe for
People · Cats · Dogs · Horses · Rabbits · Livestock · Birds
Cats None
You can relax about poisoning, since nothing in these leaves will harm a cat that stops for a taste. The one thing to mind is the sharp blade edge, which can nick a mouth, so it helps to gently discourage chewing.
Dogs None
Your dog is perfectly safe around this grass, with no risk of poisoning at all. Just try to keep an excited pup from barreling through the clump, because the serrated leaves can leave a thin scratch on a nose or paw.
Horses None
Rest easy, there is nothing toxic here to trouble a horse. A grazing horse could still scrape its lips or tongue on the sharp-edged blades, so fencing the clump off is the kind, simple fix.
Rabbits Safe
No need to fret over a rabbit, since there is no toxin here to cause any trouble. The stiff, cutting leaves are far too coarse to tempt a nibbler, so most rabbits will simply pass it by.
Livestock Safe
Cattle, goats, and sheep can graze the same pasture without any fear of poisoning. Most animals leave it be on their own, put off by the harsh, blade-edged foliage that offers little worth chewing.
Birds Safe
Birds face no chemical harm and will happily shelter among the dense plumes. The same caution applies, the edges are sharp, but feathered visitors seldom brush up against them, so there is little to worry about.
People Safe
None of the plant will poison anyone who handles it or sits nearby, so that fear can be set aside. The real care point is mechanical, since the razor-sharp leaf edges cut skin like paper, so gloves and long sleeves make working close to it comfortable and safe.
Not poisonous, but the sharp-edged leaves can inflict deep cuts on skin. Wear gloves, long sleeves, and eye protection when planting, handling, or pruning, and keep pets and children from running through or chewing the foliage to avoid mouth and skin cuts.
Varieties
Pampas grass comes in a handful of named forms that differ in size, plume color, and leaf markings. These are the ones you are most likely to come across as you shop.
Pumila
A friendly dwarf that settles in around 4 to 6 feet and shrugs off cold more readily, which is why so many gardeners reach for it first.
Rosea
Softens the usual silvery-white plumes into a gentle blush of pink.
Sunningdale Silver
A tall, willing grower loved for the big, full, silvery-white plumes it puts up.
Silver Comet
A variegated pick whose leaves carry pretty white-and-green stripes.
Gold Band
A variegated form with warm gold-banded leaves striped in yellow and green.
How to propagate
There are two ways to make more pampas grass, though only one keeps those showy plumes true. Whichever you choose, remember the sharp leaves mean gloves and long sleeves are simply part of the job.
DivisionModerate
Late winter to early spring · 1-2 growing seasons
Division is the kindest and surest way to make more pampas grass, carried out in late winter to early spring, and it is the only route that keeps those showy female plants true to type. Give a divided clump one to two growing seasons to settle in and fill out, and try not to rush it. The crowns are dense and the leaves are sharp, so slip on gloves and protective clothing before you begin cutting one apart.
SeedEasy
Spring · 1 growing season to first flowering in favorable climates
This plant is a generous self-seeder, and in a gentle climate a spring sowing can bloom within a single growing season. The trade-off is that seedlings turn out uneven, with plenty of plain, less-showy male plants among them. Please leave seed alone wherever pampas grass is invasive, since raising it would only help the spread.
Myths
All large, feathery pampas grass is the same plant.
It is an easy mix-up to make, but the pretty ornamental most people plant is Cortaderia selloana, and it is not the same as jubata grass, or purple pampas grass, which is Cortaderia jubata. Jubata grass is the far pushier invader, setting seed with no pollination at all and swallowing coastal and redwood-forest land. The two look nearly the same and share those sharp serrated leaves, but jubata grass sticks to cool, foggy coasts while selloana also takes hot, dry inland heat in stride.
Pampas grass is poisonous to pets.
You can put this worry to rest, because the ASPCA lists Cortaderia selloana as non-toxic to cats, dogs, and horses, and it holds no poison whatsoever. The only genuine risk is a mechanical cut from the razor-sharp leaf edges, never anything that could poison a pet.