FoliageKarl Foerster Feather Reed Grass
Calamagrostis x acutiflora
Karl Foerster Feather Reed Grass (Calamagrostis x acutiflora) is a fast-growing perennial, hardy in USDA zones 4-11, that matures to about 3-5 ft. It does best in full sun and part shade with low water needs in well-drained, moist and occasionally-dry soil. Expect cream, yellow and green blooms in fall, spring, summer and winter. It attracts butterflies and songbirds, stands up well to black walnut, deer and drought, grows happily in containers.
- USDA zones
- 4-11
- Sun
- Full sun, Part shade
- Water
- Low
- Mature size
- 3-5 ft
- Spacing
- 12 inches-3 feet
- Growth rate
- Fast
- Maintenance
- Low
- Soil
- Well-drained, Moist, Occasionally-dry, Occasionally-wet, Very-dry
- Foliage
- Green
- Bloom color
- Cream, Yellow, Green, Purple
- Bloom season
- Fall, Spring, Summer, Winter
- Attracts
- Butterflies, Songbirds
- Tough against
- Black walnut, Deer, Drought, Erosion, Pollution, Rabbits, Wet soil
- Native to
- Europe to Russian Far East
In the landscape
Data sources
Freeze survival
Will it survive your winters?
Hardiness zones show a normal bad winter. We check the worst one — Karl Foerster Feather Reed Grass is hardy to about -30°F (estimated from USDA zone 4), so we'll score it against the real coldest nights your area has actually had.
Powered by ~35 years of daily lows from the nearest NOAA weather station. A risk read, not a guarantee — a sheltered spot or mature plant beats the odds.
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