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Pennisetum x advena 'Rubrum' (Red Fountain Grass) - A clumping semi-evergreen grass that grows upright to 4-5+ feet tall with dark burgundy-red foliage that arches gracefully outwards and produces one-foot-long red plume-like inflorescences that rise above the foliage and arch over nicely toward the tips. This grass seems to be completely evergreen (red) in frost free zones but goes deciduous with frost and it is root hardy to about 20° F and useful as a perennial in USDA Zones 9-10 and as an annual in colder areas.
Plant in full sun and water sparingly to control height. It is both moderately drought and heat resistant but looks its best with occasional summer irrigation. This is a great ornamental grass with dark foliage that works well in mass plantings or mixed with other contrasting-colored plants. It looks its best if it is cut back in late winter to cleanly show of its new emerging foliage. This clone rarely seeds out, but occasional seedling plants emerge in garden areas and seem true to the type.
For many years most nurseries and references have listed this plant as a variety of Pennisetum setaceum, either 'Rubrum' or 'Cupreum'. While it superficially resembles Pennisetum setaceum, a declared noxious weed in the western US, this plant has in the past also been described by some grass taxonomists as being a selection of the more tropical Pennisetum macrostachyum. In the grass section of the Flora of North America, which includes naturalized and cultivated grasses, the specific name it is listed as in now Pennisetum advena. Dr. Joseph K. Wipff, previously with Texas A&M and now a turfgrass breeder, wrote the section on Pennisetum in the Flora of North America and has indicated that Red Fountain Grass is most likely a cross between Pennisetum setaceum and P. macrostachys, and as a hybrid the name most appropriately be Pennisetum x advena 'Rubrum' and so this is how we have listed this plant. The Latin word 'advena' means "newly arrived" or "stranger".
Pennisetum 'Rubrum', nor selections made from it such as the variegated clone 'Fireworks', should not be listed as a cultivar of Pennisetum setaceum as this is not only incorrect, but also confuses these plant with Pennisetum setaceum, a known noxious weed. In California and several other states where Pennisetum setaceum is a declared noxious weed it is not legal for nurseries to grow this species. In California Pennisetum setaceum currently it has a C rating with the California Department of Food and Agriculture, meaning it must be controlled in nurseries. Organizations such as PlantRight and many others are rightfully advocating that Pennisetum setaceum not be grown, so it is an important distinction that the non-weedy hybrid cultivars not be mistaken for this species.
We have grown Pennisetum 'Rubrum' at our nursery since 1982 and until 2006 also listed it as a cultivar of Pennisetum setaceum but have since corrected this. Though not yet listed as such in all nomenclatural databases, recent treatment of the genus Pennisetum has all species included in the genus Cenchrus with Pennisetum setaceum now called Cenchrus setaceus and Pennisetum macrostachys called Cenchrus elegans and this hybrid now renamed to Cenchrus × cupreus. Until such time as these new names become recognized in the horticultural trades, we have decided to continue to list this plant as Pennisetum x advena 'Rubrum'.
The information about Pennisetum x advena 'Rubrum' displayed on this web page is based on our research conducted in the nursery's horticultural library and from reliable online resources. We also include observations made about it as it grows in our nursery gardens and other gardens we have visited, as well how the crops have performed in containers in our nursery field. We will also incorporate comments we receive from others and welcome hearing from anyone with additional information, particularly if they can share cultural information that would aid others in growing this plant. |
