California Gardens - The Year Round Gardening Site

Thysanolaena maxima - Tiger Grass

Thysanolaena maxima is one of the most robust looking grasses you might find. The broad pale green blades of the Tiger Grass may look like a tropical foil but this grass is fairly drought tolerant in a pinch. It will sing a siren song for water looking pretty desparate the whole way though and then recover overnight. Thysanolaena maxima grows 8-10 feet tall and the canes bend outwards in every direction so a good sized space is required in order to keep this grass arching naturally. The clump spreads quite slowly compared to how it looks. This makes Thysanolaena maxima pretty easy to maintain in the landscape. Thysanolaena maxima grows in full sun to moderate shade. In the shade the Tiger Grass is darker green. Thysanolaena maxima is hardy into the low to mid 20°s F. Though at the lower end of that range the Tiger Grass will be Winter dormant.

Thysanolaena maxima, Tiger Grass

A 10 foot tall stand of grass against a dark background - Thysanolaena maxima - Tiger Grass. High resolution photos are part of our garden image collection.