Seslerias: Versatile Groundcover Meadow Grasses

Summer 2022

Without question, the most beautiful and versatile of all the groundcover meadow grasses are the moor grasses (Sesleria).

Moor grasses tick off all the boxes you need in a meadow grass. They are evergreen, clumping, long lived, and well behaved. Tolerant to a wide variety of soils and climates, they have been my go-to grasses for making meadows for over 25 years. The moor grasses have proved themselves in West Coast gardens from San Diego to Seattle. Few other grasses can make such claims. Although they are native to Europe, the moor grasses are among the best-selling ornamental grasses up and down the West Coast.  They thrive in meadows large and small, as they manage to be naturalistic but tidy at the same time. Their flowers are noticeable and showy, but never messy.

Campo Azul moor grass (Sesleria autumnalis syn. S. autumnalis 'Campo Verde'). Photo: Greenlee & Associates

The common name of moor grass is misleading. While adapted to limestone, the moor grasses are not necessarily from damp conditions, but rather the grasslands of Southern Europe, which were under Moorish rule. Th...