Multiple-Color Garden Grass Design

Green and Blue

• For cool, calm landscapes, choose grasses in shades of blue and green. Choices include big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii), a 7-foot-tall grass with blue-green fronds that grows in arching clumps. Big bluestem develops the best color when planted in full sun. It's hardy in USDA zones 4 to 9 and tolerates a variety of site conditions. Blue lyme grass (Elymus arenarius) is hardy in USDA zones 4 to 10 and grows to 4 feet tall. This upright grass has metallic-blue foliage and blooms with blue-green seedheads in summer that age to tan. Other blue- and green-toned grasses include blue-green moor grass (Sesleria heufleriana), hardy in USDA zones 4 to 9; little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium), hardy in USDA zones 4 to 10; and large blue hair grass (Koeleria glauca), hardy in USDA zones 6 to 8.

Yellow and Gold

• For a warm effect, plant grasses in shades of yellow and gold. Gold fountains grass (Carex dolichostachya "Kaga Nishiki") grows in mounds of yellow foliage up to 2 feet tall. Hardy in USDA zones 5 to 8, this evergreen grass tolerates drought and partial shade. Gold feather grass (Miscanthus sinensis "Goldfeder") grows to 7 feet tall and has bright green fronds with yellow stripes that mature to a yellow-green by summer's end. This sun-loving grass blooms with silver inflorescences and is hardy in USDA zones 6 to 9. Other yellow and golden grasses include "Evergold" striped weeping sedge (Carex oshimensis "Evergold"), a green-yellow striped grass hardy in USDA zones 6 to 8; golden hakonechloa (Hakonechloa macro "Aureola") hardy in USDA zones 6 to 9; and golden-striped bamboo, (Pleioblastus auricoma), hardy in USDA zones 5 to 9.

Red and Burgundy

• For rich, bright tones, choose grasses with foliage, fall color or inflorescences in shades of red, maroon and burgundy. Red silver grass (Miscanthus sinensis "Rotsilber") turns red-orange in fall and blooms with red-pink inflorescences. This 7-foot-tall grass grows in USDA zones 5 to 9 and has the brightest color when planted in sunny exposures. Dwarf red fountain grass (Pennisetum setaceum) grows to 4 feet tall and is hardy in USDA zones 9 to 10 but can be grown as an annual in cooler climates. Cultivars include "Burgundy Giant," a 5-foot-tall grass with maroon foliage; "Atrosanguineum," which has maroon fronds; and "Rubrum Dwarf," a compact variety with red-purple foliage. Japanese blood grass (Imperata cylindrica var. koenigii), hardy in USDA zones 6 to 9, has 2-foot-long green fronds with bright red tips. Flame grass (Miscanthus "Purpurascens"), hardy in USDA zones 4 to 9, turns red and burgundy in autumn.

Pink and White

• For a light, airy look, plant pink and white grasses such as pink muhly (Muhlenbergia capillaris). Hardy in USDA zones 6 to 9, this drought-tolerant grass grows in 3-foot-tall clumps of fine, upright foliage topped with pink inflorescences. Silverfeather grass (Miscanthus sinensis "Silberfeder") blooms with showy white flowers in summer that age to pink. This sun-loving grass grows to 7 feet tall and is hardy in USDA zones 4 to 9. "Little Kitten" maiden grass (Miscanthus sinensis "Little Kitten") blooms with long-lasting plumes of feathery white. Hardy in USDA zones 5 to 9, this grass grows best in full sun and reaches heights to 3 feet. Other pink and white grasses include pampas grass (Cortaderia selloana), a 10-foot-tall grass hardy in USDA zones 7b to 10, and broad-leaved cotton grass (Eriophorum latifolia), which grows to just over 2 feet tall and has spiky white inflorescences. It's hardy in USDA zones 4 to 8.