Tufted fescue forms dense mounds of fine blue-green leaves, topped in early summer by small flower spikes with a pink-purple tint.
- Height
- 50–100 cm / 1.6–3.3 ft
- Spread
- 10–50 cm / 0.3–1.6 ft
- Light
- Full sun / Partial shade
- Soil moisture
- Dry
- Flowering
- Summer
- Foliage
- Semi-evergreen
- Maintenance
- Medium
- USDA zones
- 4a–8b
Planting
Choose full sun and well-drained soil. Water consistently while establishing the planting; light shade is tolerated, but the blue foliage colour becomes less pronounced.
Care
Cut old foliage back in early spring to refresh the clump. Divide and replant every two or three years when the centre begins to die out.
Before planting: Wet winter soil is damaging, and hot, humid summers can cause foliage to decline.
Planting Tufted fescue?
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Sources & photo credit
Plant reference: NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox. Content checked . Flowering seasons vary with local climate; USDA zones describe winter cold tolerance.
RHS: Festuca amethystina — mature dimensions
- Tufted fescue: Stan Shebs · CC BY-SA 3.0. Resized, converted to WebP and cropped for display.
- Pennsylvania sedge: Erutuon · CC BY-SA 2.0. Resized, converted to WebP and cropped for display.
- 'Dilys' geranium: Krzysztof Golik · CC BY-SA 4.0. Resized, converted to WebP and cropped for display.
- Bearberry: Walter Siegmund · CC BY-SA 3.0. Resized, converted to WebP and cropped for display.