Festuca glauca
Blue fescue
Common names: Blue sheep fescue
At a glance
- Light
- Full sun
- Pot size
- from 5 l
- Lifespan
- Perennial
- Flowering
- Jun–Jul
- Hardiness
- Hardy
This description was machine-translated.
Description
Blue fescue (Festuca glauca) is a small ornamental grass with dense, steel‑blue hemispherical tufts of fine blades. It originates from dry, sunny habitats and is well suited for rock gardens, raised beds, or containers. From June to July it produces delicate, slightly pendulous flower spikes that accentuate its blue hue. Varieties such as "Elijah Blue" and "Intense Blue" are noted for their particularly vivid blue tones.
Care instructions
Plant in full sun on a warm, well‑drained, slightly sandy or loamy soil; avoid water‑logged or stagnant spots. Water newly planted clumps regularly, then the plant tolerates longer dry periods without extra watering. In early spring (late February to early March, week 9 to 10) trim the clumps back to finger‑thick to encourage fresh, saturated blue foliage. Divide every three to four years to prevent the center from becoming hollow. On heavy, wet soils, add a handful of sand or gravel to the planting hole to improve drainage.
The care notes were machine-translated from German.
Garden year
FloweringJun–Jul
Soil & site
Soil pH
Soil type
well-drained, sandy, lean, dry
Blue fescue loves free-draining, rather poor soil that reliably drains away winter waterlogging. Sandy to gravelly mixes with little humus suit it best; loosen heavy loamy soils with sand or fine grit. Chalky subsoil is well tolerated, and the pH may happily be neutral to slightly alkaline.
Feeding
Light feeder
As an undemanding ornamental grass, blue fescue manages without additional feeding; soil that is too rich in nutrients even makes the compact clump shape go soft and the blue colour fade. In spring a thin layer of mature compost around the clump is enough if the site is very poor. The plant needs nothing more; it specialises in scarcity.
Overwintering
Blue fescue is hardy and remains visible as an evergreen clump even in the cold season. A free-draining site matters, because cold and wet affect the roots more than frost alone. Cut back dried-up blades in early spring so that the new growth is vigorous and the blue colouring looks fresh again.
Propagation
Methods
- From seed
- Division
The simplest method is division in spring or early autumn: dig up the clump and divide it with a sharp spade into fist-sized pieces. Dividing every three to four years is worthwhile anyway, because otherwise the clump goes bare on the inside and the lovely blue colour fades in the middle. Sowing is also possible, but the seedlings often do not come true and the intense blue colouring can turn out weaker. For evenly blue plants, division is therefore the more reliable choice.
For your garden
Grow Blue fescue yourself
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