Miscanthus sinensis Kleine Fontaine
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Miscanthus sinensis ‘Kleine Fontaine’ brings graceful movement, texture and a wonderful late-season display to the garden. This compact, free-flowering ornamental grass forms a handsome clump of narrow, arching green leaves, each picked out with a distinctive white midrib. From late summer, feathery red flower heads rise above the foliage before quickly maturing to soft, silvery plumes, creating the light, flowing appearance that makes Miscanthus such a favourite in contemporary and naturalistic planting.
As autumn arrives, the foliage develops warm yellow tones while the fluffy flower heads continue to provide structure and interest. Reaching around 1-1.5 metres tall, it has plenty of presence without becoming overwhelming, making it particularly useful in mixed borders, cottage gardens and architectural planting schemes.
Supplied in approx. 2 litre containers.
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Plant ‘Kleine Fontaine’ in full sun and moderately fertile, moist but well-drained soil. It is adaptable to chalk, clay, loam and sandy soils, but dislikes excessive winter wet, so good drainage is particularly important during the colder months. Water regularly while newly planted to help it establish, with container-grown plants needing more frequent watering during warm, dry weather. Leave the faded foliage and flower stems standing through winter for their attractive structure, then cut everything back close to ground level in spring before fresh growth begins. This is a reliably hardy grass, rated H6 by the RHS, making it suitable for gardens across most of the UK.
The cultivar name ‘Kleine Fontäne’ translates from German as “small fountain”, a wonderfully fitting description of its arching foliage and cascading flower plumes. It was raised by influential German plantsman Ernst Pagels and received the RHS Award of Garden Merit following Miscanthus trials. The RHS trial noted its spectacular fluffy seed heads and particularly useful height.