I divided 14 gallons of pampas grass into 8 plants last weekend, and since then, it has rained a good bit every day. There's plenty of sun before the rain, but each plant (except a couple of blades on one of them) is now very pale and lifeless looking. I made sure to keep some root on each replanted section and I dug wide holes and refilled with organic compost, potting soil and ground dirt from the holes. There should be no airpockets around the roots. What's going on and what do I need to do to, or is it too late? Mary
The best time to do divisions is before the plant starts to grow in the spring. It sounds like you have put to much stress on the plant, when all the energy from the root has gone to the blades. Did you cut back the top growth at all?
No, I just divided them all and planted them in small groupings. They were standing up more today, so maybe that's a good sign. Do you recommend cutting them, and do you have pampas grass, also? I have some that I planted 2 years ago that is doing great, but I've never cut it.
Pampas grass hasn't become a pest in the southeastern US (to my knowledge). They should revive pretty well, and I wouldn't advise cutting them right now. If they should fail, I think you can easily get native Spartina bakeri, which has become popular and (I think) is the one that's used for those traditional Charleston baskets. Does anyone grow lemon grass up there?
