Life Span
Perennial
Perennial
Type
Grass
Flowering Plants
Origin
Europe, Asia
Southwestern United States, California
Types
Pennisetum alopecuroides
-
Number of Varieties
840
0
40000
👆🏻
Habitat
Grassland
Dry areas, meadows
USDA Hardiness Zone
4-84-9
0
99
👆🏻
AHS Heat Zone
-
9-1
Sunset Zone
2a, 2b, 3a, 3b, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 14, 15, 16, 17, 21, 22, 23, 24
1a, 1b, 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 18, 19, 20, 21
Habit
Clump-Forming
Clump-Forming
Plant Size
Minimum Height
30.50 cm61.00 cm
0
3900
👆🏻
Minimum Width
30.50 cm25.40 cm
0
6350
👆🏻
Plant Color
Flower Color
White
Crimson
Flower Color Modifier
Bicolor
Bicolor
Fruit Color
-
-
Leaf Color in Spring
Purple, Dark Green
Green
Leaf Color in Summer
Light Green
Green
Leaf Color in Fall
Purple, Dark Green
Green
Leaf Color in Winter
Tan
-
Shape
Leaf Shape
Grass like
Oblong
Thorns
✔
✘
✔
✘
Plant Season
Summer, Fall
Summer
Growing Conditions
Sunlight
Full Sun, Partial Sun
Full Sun, Partial Sun
Growth Rate
Medium
Fast
Type of Soil
Loam
Loam, Sand
The pH of Soil
Acidic, Neutral, Alkaline
Neutral, Alkaline
Soil Drainage
Average
Well drained
Bloom Time
Spring, Late Spring, Early Summer, Summer
Early Summer, Summer, Late Summer
Repeat Bloomer
✔
✘
✔
✘
Tolerances
Wet Site, Salt
-
Where to Plant?
Ground
Ground
How to Plant?
Seedlings
Seedlings, Stem Planting
Plant Maintenance
Medium
Medium
Watering Plants
Watering Requirements
Requires a lot of watering, Requires regular watering
Do Not over Water, Requires watering in the growing season, Water Deeply, Water when soil is dry
In Summer
Lots of watering
Lots of watering
In Spring
Ample Water
Moderate
In Winter
Moderate
Average Water
Soil
Soil pH
Acidic, Neutral, Alkaline
Neutral, Alkaline
Soil Type
Loam
Loam, Sand
Soil Drainage Capacity
Average
Well drained
Sun Exposure
Full Sun, Partial Sun
Full Sun, Partial Sun
Pruning
Prune to control growth
No pruning needed in the early stages, Prune to stimulate growth, Remove damaged leaves, Remove dead leaves, Remove deadheads
Fertilizers
Requires high amount of nitrogen
All-Purpose Liquid Fertilizer, Apply 10-10-10 amount
Pests and Diseases
Red blotch
Insects
Plant Tolerance
Wet Site
Drought
Flowers
Showy
Showy
Flower Petal Number
Single
Single
Fruits
Showy Fruit
✔
✘
✔
✘
Edible Fruit
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrance
Fragrant Flower
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrant Fruit
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrant Leaf
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrant Bark/Stem
✔
✘
✔
✘
Showy Foliage
✔
✘
✔
✘
Showy Bark
✔
✘
✔
✘
Foliage Texture
Medium
Medium
Foliage Sheen
Matte
Matte
Evergreen
✔
✘
✔
✘
Invasive
✔
✘
✔
✘
Self-Sowing
✔
✘
✔
✘
Attracts
-
Hummingbirds
Allergy
Asthma, conjunctivitis, Rhinitis
Asthma
Uses
Aesthetic Uses
-
Showy Purposes
Beauty Benefits
-
-
Edible Uses
✔
✘
✔
✘
Environmental Uses
Food for animals, Food for insects, Wildlife
Air purification
Plant Benefits
Medicinal Uses
-
Burns, Snakebite, Stomach aliments
Part of Plant Used
Whole plant
Whole plant
Other Uses
cultivated as pasture or hay crop, Food for animals, Food for insects
Used as Ornamental plant
Used As Indoor Plant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Used As Outdoor Plant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Garden Design
Bedding Plant, Feature Plant, Groundcover
Container, Mixed Border, Rock Garden / Wall, Wildflower
Botanical Name
ALOPECURUS
PENSTEMON eatonii
Common Name
Foxtail Grass
Firecracker Penstemon
In Hindi
Foxtail Grass
Firecracker penstemon
In German
Foxtail Grass
Kracher penstemon
In French
Foxtail Grass
Firecracker penstemon
In Spanish
Hierba de cola de zorra
Penstemon del petardo
In Greek
αλωπέκουρου Grass
πυροτέχνημα penstemon
In Portuguese
grama de foxtail
Penstemon do foguete
In Polish
ber trawy
petarda penstemon
In Latin
panicum Grass
Firecracker Persicaria
Kingdom
Plantae
Plantae
Phylum
Magnoliophyta
-
Class
Liliopsida
-
Order
Cyperales
Lamiales
Family
Poaceae
Scrophulariaceae
Genus
Alopecurus
Penstemon
Clade
-
Angiosperms, Asterids, Eudicots
Tribe
-
-
Subfamily
-
-
Number of Species
12250
1
27800
👆🏻