Winter Plant Dreaming: All Gold Japanese Forest Grass

There are "seed people" - those gardeners who spend the cold, dark days of January and February getting their seedlings going - pouring over catalogs, ordering supplies, turning on the lights, etc.  Me?  I'm more of a 'tree/shrub/plant/perennial dreamer' during those same months.  Just a couple of days ago, I shared this Slender Hinoki Cypress (tree form) that I'm lusting after to add to the backyard and mentioned how it is often part of a "Japanese Garden". 

Over the years here on the blog, I've done a bunch of 'tree dreaming' posts, but this one is a little different:  let's call it 'Grasses Dreaming'. 

This post is about a grass that I came across on the Monrovia site these: All Gold Japanese Forest Grass.

Here's a look at them from Monrovia:

This photo is not mine - via Monrovia here.  

Others, like Michigan Bulb carry something that is close, but not the same including this Golden Hakone Grass - and point out that it was the 2009 Perennial of the Year.  And, importantly, they mention that it grows well in shade.  But, alas, this one only is hardy down to zone 6.  So, it is out for us. 

I like the pop of color that these can provide and think that they can find a nice home in our garden.  In particular, I'm thinking of creating a little 'nook' in the back of the garden that would be 'hidden' by a focal point.  These could be nice in that area.  More on that whole project to come.

In the Spring of 2019, I added three Gold Cone Junipers that have a nice pop of similar color when they get new growth in the Spring.  I really liked those when they went in, but after 'wiring them up' as instructed to do to help avoid some Winter snow damage, I noticed that they were suffering in the early Fall.  And I'm uncertain if they're going to make it. 

But, these grasses are (now) on my [grasses dreaming] list because of their color and their habit. 

I keep coming back to my visit to the Gotenyama Garden in Tokyo last year.  And think about the hostas and ferns grasses that were packed in there.  I have a couple of Japanese Painted Ferns in the yard, but I should add more. 

As for grasses, I've posted a few different times about the grasses we have on the property.  As part of our 'move-in' landscaping the team at Green Grass planted three Karl Foerster Fountain Grasses in a little nook between our front stoop and driveway. Here's what they looked like this past Fall.  I also took the landscape plan and planted five more of those grasses outside of the rear foundation in the back by the kitchen.  And, finally, I planted three more fountain grasses that Nat bought at Costco a couple of seasons ago.  They didn't make it, so I ripped them out. 

This grass doesn't seem too terribly common, so I'm guessing it is going to be a "The Growing Place" type of purchase.  Not a big box store.