Good Grass Seed for Rabbit Cover in Wet Areas

Zone 4

• Many homeowners like watching wildlife in their landscape. You can draw rabbits to your garden with careful plant selection. Rabbits like nesting in tall grasses and weeded areas. They rely on this vegetation for food, as well as shelter. If you have a wet site but want to create rabbit habitat, choose tall, ornamental grasses that tolerate moist soil. Plant species that thrive in your region's U.S. Department of Agriculture Plant Hardiness Zone rating. Most ornamental grasses are sown with seed.

Zone 5

• Average lows reach minus 20 degrees in USDA zone 5. Tufted grass (Carex elata) prefers very moist-to-wet soil and even grows in standing water. This 3 foot tall grass is hardy in zones 5 to 9 and prefers sun to partial shade. Its arching, narrow foliage develops yellow-and-green stripes when grown in full sun. Switch grass (Panicum virgatum) tolerates moist soil and prefers sun-to-partial-shade exposures. This dense, clumping grass is hardy in zones 5 to 9 and grows from 4 to 6 feet tall. Switch grass has fine, blue-green foliage and produces red-purple flowers followed by red seeds.

Zone 6

• USDA zone 6 average lows reach minus 10 degrees. Japanese blood grass (Imperata cylindrica var. koenigii) is hardy in zones 6 to 9. It grows to 2 feet tall and has green fronds with red tips. Japanese blood grass prefers moist-to-wet soil and sun-to-partial-shade exposures. It tolerates drought once established. Ravenna grass (Saccharum ravennae) grows to 14 feet tall and is hardy in zones 6 to 9. This upright grass has gray-green foliage and produces pink-to-silver plumes in summer. It grows well in moist soil and full sun.

Zone 7

• The average annual lows reach zero degrees in USDA zone 7. Japanese sweet flag (Acorus gramineus) is hardy in zones 7 to 9. It grows to 12 inches tall and prefers moist-to-damp soil and sun to partial shade. Japanese sweet flag grows in clumps of shiny, aromatic, yellow-and-green foliage. Marrow's sedge (Carex morrowii) grows to 2 feet tall and is hardy in zones 7 to 9. This stiff grass has green leaves with white margins and prefers shaded sites with moist soil.