Ruby Muhly Grass - Muhlenbergia reverchonii 'Undaunted' - Three Planted By Boardwalk - October 2023

Another day, another set of plants going in as part of my #FallPlanting sprint.  This time...featuring a set of ornamental grasses that I've seen other talk about:  Muhlenbergia reverchonii 'Undaunted' - or Ruby Muhly Grass.  At the top of this post is a look at one of the small quart-sized grasses that I brought home.  And below is a photo of the tag at The Growing Place - where they call this grass a "show stopper'.  

Across Instagram, I've seen a few gardeners that I follow post photos of the plumes of these Muhly grasses - especially in the sunset.  At $5 a piece, the sale price had me trapped.  

When I began to get them planted, I was struck by how dense and mature their root systems were - see below for what I'd consider a root-bound grass:

I opted to put them right at the end of the current boardwalk - two in back, one out front to create a small grass colony.  See below for two photos:  one from the yard looking back at the boardwalk.  The other from the reverse angle.

But, Jake...that's where the columnar Scotch Pine tree was recently transplanted.  Oh..about that.  I'l get to posting it before the season is over.  It is...ummm...dead.

My 2023 Fall Planting List - so far - includes a number of new and divided plants.  And now one tree.

Now up to 33 new plants.  3 new via division.  1 Tree.  37 total for 2023 #FallPlanting.  21 of them are groundcover plants.  Five sedums.

• Five divided Everillo Sedges - Carex Everillo - from one sedge with Center rot in the backyard.
• A Sempervivum ‘Hopewell’ - a succulent-looking Chicks and Hens planted down by the sidewalk - IB2DWs. 
• Two Sedum spurium 'Voodoo' - IB2DWs - to attempt to outcompete the Creeping Jenny.
• Split three Elijah Blue Fescue clumps into six - IB2DWs along the driveway.
• A single Burgundy Glow Ajuga along the driveway IB2DWs.  Lots of groundcover IB2DWs, this Fall.
• Eight Ajuga 'Chocolate Chip' planted - five in the island bed.  Three along south front porch bed border. 
• A Cardoon - IB2DWs - that I'm not sure is going to make it.  I'm going to mulch it in VERY heavily this Winter. 
• Two Silver Mound Artemisias planted IB2DWs - close to the current planted bed. 
• A dwarf, fern-like shrub:  Matcha Ball Ash Leaf Spirea planted in the front porch bed. 
• Three Pentsemon 'Midnight Masquerade' dark foliage perennials planted in the new/extended IB2DWs bed.  
• Two Stachys monieri 'Hummelo' plants, in the front yard by the Sweetspire. 
• Three Greenlee Moor Grasses - Sesleria Greenlee Hybrid in front of the Sweetspire shrubs in front.
• A dwarf conifer: Baby Blue Spruce - planted IB2DWs extended down by the sidewalk.
• Two John Creech Sedums - planted by the Little Henry Sweetspires.  Hoping to cover and outcompete the weeds that creep up in this border. 
• Three Ruby Muhlygrasses - Planted at the end of the boardwalk in back.

Below are the front and back of the tags for these grasses:

A note for 2024 and beyond:  In this post, Shannon Currey who is a horticultural educator with Izel Native Plants and the author includes some photos showing how to use these red muhly grasses with white ones.

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