Top 10+ native ornamental grasses that bring effortless beauty to your yard

Create a gorgeous, low-maintenance landscape with these North American beauties.

Ornamental grasses make beautiful, low-maintenance additions to any garden. However, some types can spread aggressively or are considered invasive, so it's important to choose carefully. Avoid this headache and help wildlife out by selecting from the following well-behaved types of ornamental grasses that are native to North America. They'll add height and texture to your plant combinations, mixing well with perennials, annuals, and bulbs. Like other grasses, they don't have showy flowers, but their leaf color varies and changes through the seasons, from greens and blues to reds and gold. They also produce attractive seed heads that vary in color and shape and last in the garden for many weeks.

Many native ornamental grasses are host plants (food sources) for the larval or caterpillar stages of butterflies and moths. Most of these grasses stand upright through fall and winter, providing shelter for birds and over-wintering native insects. Birds eat the seeds if you leave the plants standing through the winter.

01 of 10

Prairie Dropseed

If you're new to native ornamental grasses, prairie dropseed is an excellent starter plant. Its compact size and elegant form make it ideal for the front of garden beds. Allow enough space for its fine, graceful foliage and seed heads to shine. This deer-resistant grass pairs effortlessly with other plants and stays put, avoiding unwanted spread. Some describe its scent as reminiscent of popcorn.

Name: Sporobulus heterolepis

Growing Condition: Full sun in dry to medium soil

Size: To 4 feet tall and 2 feet wide

Zones: 3-8

02 of 10

Little Bluestem

Little bluestem is a striking, tall native grass that adds height and serves as a focal point in any garden. Its blue-green leaves take on reddish hues in the fall, adding seasonal interest. Plant it in well-drained soil with ample sunlight exposure. Unlike its natural prairie habitat where it grows closely with other plants, little bluestem benefits from ample space in garden settings. It may droop in nutrient-rich soils, preferring leaner conditions.

Name: Schizachyrium scoparium

Growing Condition: Full sun in dry to medium soils

Size: To 4 feet tall and 1 foot wide

Zones:  3-10

03 of 10

Sideoats Grama

Popular for its ornamental charm, sideoats grama is a compact, deer-resistant grass characterized by cascading seed heads that dangle from one side of the stem. These decorative seed stalks contribute to its popularity among native grasses. During bloom, red-tinged stamens appear, followed by small, eye-catching purple and orange flowers. This grass also serves as a host plant for the larvae of various Skipper butterflies and moths.

Name: Bouteloua curtipendula

Growing Condition: Full sun in dry to medium soils

Size: To 2 feet tall and wide

Zones: 3-9

04 of 10

Blue Grama

Blue grama features unique seed heads that dangle horizontally from one side of its stems, resembling tiny strokes of light or combs. Its bluish-gray leaves transition to golden brown shades in autumn, often accented with orange and red hues. Delicate purplish flowers bloom on arching stems above the foliage in early to mid-summer, bringing the plant's total height to around 20 inches. Known for its resilience, blue grama thrives in handle hot and dry conditions. 

Name: Bouteloua gracilis

Growing Condition: Full sun in medium to dry soils

Size: To 2 feet high and wide

Zones: 3-10

05 of 10

Tufted Hairgrass

With its fine-textured, hair-like seed heads, tufted hairgrass forms attractive mounds of wiry, green foliage that takes on a golden hue as the season changes. This native ornamental grass tolerates wet soil and can thrive in partial shade. Several North American butterflies rely on it as a larval host plant. In late winter, its somewhat messy appearance may lead gardeners to mistake it for a weed, so avoid premature removal before spring growth.

Name: Deschampsia cespitosa

Growing Condition: Partial shade in medium to wet soils

Size:  To 3 feet high and 2 feet wide

Zones: 4-8

06 of 10

Indiangrass

The upright foliage of Indiangrass ranges from green to gray-green or blue-green, then turns gold in the fall. The seed heads are long, tan-yellow feathery spikes that appear on bright golden-yellow stems when pollen is shedding and turn bronze as the season continues. The leaf branching creates a wider plant than other tall grasses. Drought and deer-resistant, Indiangrass helps support wildlife, including various songbirds.

Name: Sorghastrum nutans

Growing Condition: Full sun in medium to dry soils

Size: To 6 feet high and 2 feet wide

Zones: 3-9

07 of 10

Big Bluestem

Big bluestem is easy to identify by its 3-branched seed heads that resemble a turkey foot. Each branch has a purple spike that turns bronze in the fall. The foliage changes color from green to blue-green in summer, to a deep red-bronze in the fall. It provides interest well into the winter. The growth stays compact until midsummer and compliments other perennials without overpowering them. This grass is a host plant for numerous species of skippers, and it provides shelter and food for songbirds.

Name: Andropogon gerardii

Growing Conditions: Full sun in moist to dry soils

Size: To 8 feet high and 2 feet wide

Zones: 3-9

08 of 10

Switchgrass

Growing across North America, switchgrass tolerates a wide range of soils and climate conditions. Leaf color ranges from deep green to gray green to greenish purple. Airy, bronze to beige panicles of flowers appear in mid-summer above the upright foliage. This native grass is attractive throughout every season, even providing winter interest. Form and foliage color vary widely between varieties.

Name: Panicum virgatum 

Growing Condition: Sun and light shade in moist to dry soils

Size: To 6 feet high and 2 feet wide

Zones: 3-8

Note: This native grass may be aggressive in ideal garden conditions, where it can spread by slowly creeping rhizomes or fallen seeds.

09 of 10

Northern Sea Oats

Name: Chasmanthium latifolium

Growing Condition: Full sun or part shade in well-drained soil

Size: To 4 feet tall and 2 feet wide.

Zones: 4 to 9

Note: This native grass may become aggressive in ideal garden conditions and increase by self-seeding.

10 of 10

Deergrass

Deergrass grows in sandy or well-drained soils in the southwestern United States and parts of Mexico. It adapts to a wide range of growing conditions. This evergreen native grass has gray-green leaves that hold their color even through droughts. The showy, slender flowers emerge grayish and mature to buff and persist into winter.

Name: Muhlenbergia rigens

Growing Condition: Full sun to partial shade in moist to dry, well-drained soil

Size: To 3 feet tall and wide

Zones: 7-9

All of these native ornamental grasses work well with perennials and other plants in your landscape, especially other natives. During the growing season, use tall grasses to help other plants stand upright and shorter grasses to cover the leafless stems of perennials. Just be sure to choose types of native grasses with the same needs as the other plants you want to grow with it so your whole garden will thrive.