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Key characteristics

Family: Poaceae
Height: 2 to 3 feet
Width: 2 to 3 feet
Flower color: Greenish to tan
Foliage color: Blue-gray
Bloom time: Mid-summer
Light: Full sun to partial shade
Water: Low to moderate
Maintenance: Low
Growing zone: USDA zones 4 to 8
Wildlife: Provides cover for small wildlife and attracts pollinators like bees and butterflies

Perennials

Helictotrichon sempervirens

Blue Oat Grass

Helictotrichon sempervirens, or Blue Oat Grass, is a perennial grass known for its silvery-blue foliage and elegant form. Its narrow, arching leaves create a dense, fountain-like clump, adding cool texture to garden landscapes. The fine-textured blades maintain their ornamental value throughout the growing season, making it a popular choice for adding contrast in garden beds, borders, and containers.

In mid to late summer, Blue Oat Grass produces airy flower spikes that rise above the foliage.

Light

Full sun to partial shade

Water

Low to moderate

Bloom time

Mid-summer

Find this plant

Works well in

Borders
Cottage Gardens
Pollinator Gardens
Waterwise Gardens
Cut Flower Gardens

Companion plants

Astilbes · Foxgloves · Bergenias · Sedums · Columbines · Lungworts

Design tip

Summer flowers carry the middle of the season, so place it where the bed needs color once spring bulbs fade. It takes sun or light shade, which makes it useful along the changing light of a bed edge or a partly shaded border.