Is Japanese Blood Grass deer resistant?
Imperata cylindrica
About Japanese Blood Grass
Blades turn blood red from the tip down as the season goes on. The green-reverting form is a federally listed noxious weed, so buy only the named ornamental selection and pull any shoot that comes up plain green.
Soil and care
- Soil pH
- 5.5 to 7
- Drainage
- Consistently moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Spacing
- 12 to 18 in apart
- Growth rate
- Moderate
- Maintenance
- Moderate
Similar to Japanese Blood Grass
Other ornamental grasss with the same deer rating.
- Big BluestemAndropogon sp.Zones 3–9, genus rangeRarely damaged
- Blue FescueFestuca glaucaZones 4–8Rarely damaged
- Blue Oat GrassHelictotrichon sempervirensZones 4–8Rarely damaged
- Clump BambooFargesia sp.Zones 5–9, genus rangeRarely damaged
- Feather Reed GrassCalamagrostis sp.Zones 4–9, genus rangeRarely damaged
- Fountain GrassPennisetum alopecuroidesZones 6–9Rarely damaged
Where Japanese Blood Grass grows
Hardy across most of these 50 states on zone range alone. Mountain and coastal areas sit outside the ranges used here, so check your own zone before ordering.
- Pennsylvania
- New Jersey
- New York
- Connecticut
- Massachusetts
- Virginia
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Wisconsin
- Ohio
- Indiana
- Illinois
- Minnesota
- Missouri
- North Carolina
- Tennessee
- Georgia
- Texas
- Colorado
- California
- Oregon
- Washington
- New Hampshire
- Vermont
- Maine
- Rhode Island
- Delaware
- West Virginia
- Kentucky
- South Carolina
- Florida
- Alabama
- Mississippi
- Louisiana
- Arkansas
- Oklahoma
- Kansas
- Nebraska
- Iowa
- South Dakota
- Montana
- Wyoming
- Idaho
- Utah
- Nevada
- Arizona
- New Mexico
- Alaska
- District of Columbia
- Hawaii
Browse from here
Every list Japanese Blood Grass belongs to.
Hardy in these zones
Common questions about Japanese Blood Grass
- Is Japanese Blood Grass deer resistant?
- Japanese Blood Grass (Imperata cylindrica) is rated Rarely Damaged on the Rutgers NJAES four-tier scale. Deer almost always leave this alone.
- What hardiness zones does Japanese Blood Grass grow in?
- Japanese Blood Grass is hardy in USDA zones 5 to 9. Outside that range it will either not survive winter or will struggle with summer heat.
- Does Japanese Blood Grass grow in shade?
- Yes. Japanese Blood Grass tolerates part shade, which makes it one of the options for a shaded bed where deer also browse.
- How big does Japanese Blood Grass get?
- Mature height is roughly 24–48 in. Growth rate is moderate.