Images Depict Mature Plants
Purple Love Grass
Eragrostis spectabilis
Purple Love Grass is one of those native grasses that looks best when you let it do what it wants to do. One plant is nice, but a drift of them is where the magic happens—the purple haze in late summer is soft, airy, and completely different from heavier ornamental grasses. I like it for hot, dry, sandy spots, sunny slopes, and naturalized borders where you want color without extra water, fertilizer, or fuss.
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A Native Grass with an Airy Purple Haze in Late Summer
Soft Purple Color for Sunny Native Plantings
Purple Love Grass is a low-growing native ornamental grass known for its airy reddish-purple flower clouds in late summer. Botanically known as Eragrostis spectabilis, this warm-season bunchgrass forms short, green foliage clumps that suddenly transform when fine purple seed heads rise above the leaves, creating a soft, smoky haze.
The effect is best in groups or masses, where the purple bloom layer appears to float above the planting. Use Purple Love Grass in sunny borders, native meadows, dry slopes, pollinator-friendly plantings, curbside strips, and low-maintenance naturalized areas.
Excellent for Dry, Sandy, and Poor Soils
Purple Love Grass is a tough native grass for tough sites. It thrives in full sun and performs especially well in sandy, gravelly, dry, or low-fertility soils where many more refined ornamentals struggle.
This makes it a strong choice for hot roadside-style plantings, dry banks, sunny slopes, hellstrips, meadow edges, and lean soils where you want color without high water or fertilizer demands. Once established, it is drought-tolerant and low-input.
A Lower, Softer Alternative to Larger Ornamental Grasses
Unlike tall Miscanthus, Switchgrass, or Pampas-style grasses, Purple Love Grass stays relatively low. The foliage is usually 8–14 inches tall, with airy flowers and seed heads that lift the overall height to about 1–2 feet.
Its smaller size makes it useful at the front of borders, along paths, in mass plantings, or as a meadow-like ground layer. The plant has a relaxed, natural look rather than a formal clipped appearance.
Late-Season Seed Heads, Movement, and Wildlife Value
The purple flowers appear in late summer and gradually mature to tan or brown as the seed develops. As the seed heads dry, they can detach and roll or move with the wind, adding to the plant’s natural meadow character.
The seeds can provide food for birds and small mammals, and the open clumps add seasonal cover and texture. Purple Love Grass also fits well into native plantings where grasses, perennials, and seed-producing plants support a more complete habitat.
Low Maintenance and Deer Resistant
Plant Purple Love Grass in full sun with well-drained soil. Avoid rich, heavily fertilized, constantly wet sites, which can reduce the tidy low habit and are not where this grass performs best.
Maintenance is simple. Cut or rake back old growth in late winter or early spring before new warm-season growth begins. Purple Love Grass is generally considered deer resistant, drought-tolerant once established, and useful in mass plantings, meadow gardens, and dry sunny landscapes.
Purple Love grass is widely used by internationally renowned garden designer Piet Oudolf and was listed as one of the "100 Must-Have Plants" in Gardens Illustrated magazine. The species was extensively used in Oudolf's designs for New York City's High Line and Chicago's Lurie Garden.
| Hardiness Zone: | 5-9 |
|---|---|
| Mature Height: | Commonly 8–14 inches tall in foliage; 1–2 feet tall in bloom |
| Mature Width: | About 1–2 feet wide, sometimes wider in ideal sites |
| Sunlight: | Full sun preferred; tolerates light part shade |
| Soil | Dry to medium, well-drained soil; excellent for sandy, gravelly, poor, and low-fertility soils |
| Water Requirements: | Water regularly after planting; drought tolerant once established; avoid consistently wet soils |
| Bloom Time / Color | Late summer to early fall; airy reddish-purple to pink-purple flower and seed heads aging tan or brown |
| Ornamental Features | Airy purple flower cloud, fine meadow texture, drought tolerance, low habit, mass planting effect |
| Wildlife Value | Seeds may feed birds and small mammals; native grass provides seasonal cover and meadow habitat |
| Resistance | Generally deer resistant; drought tolerant once established; tolerant of heat, poor soil, sandy soil, and can grow under a Black Walnut Tree |
| Landscape Uses | Native meadow, dry slope, sunny border, mass planting, curbside strip, hellstrip, poor soil planting, pollinator garden, naturalized area, low-maintenance ground layer, light-use lawn alternative |
How to Care for Purple Love Grass
Before you buy a Purple Love Grass, make sure to read about the care instructions that are recommended to keep your plant healthy and thriving.
How should I plant Purple Love Grass?
Plant Purple Love Grass in full sun with dry to medium, well-drained soil. Choose a site where its airy purple seed heads can show best, such as a sunny border, native meadow, dry slope, curbside planting, hellstrip, or low-maintenance naturalized bed. Dig a hole about as wide as the root ball and just as deep. Set the crown level with the surrounding soil, backfill gently, and water thoroughly. Space plants about 12–18 inches apart for a fuller mass planting, or slightly farther apart for a looser meadow effect.
How often should I water Purple Love Grass after planting?
Water Purple Love Grass deeply after planting, then keep the soil lightly moist while roots establish. During the first growing season, water during extended dry periods, especially if planting in sandy or gravelly soil. Once established, Purple Love Grass is drought-tolerant and usually needs little supplemental water. Avoid overwatering or planting it in soggy soil, since this grass is best suited to sunny, dry, well-drained sites.
When should I fertilize Purple Love Grass?
Purple Love Grass usually does not need fertilizer in most garden settings. It naturally performs well in lean, sandy, gravelly, or low-fertility soils. Avoid heavy fertilizing, especially with high-nitrogen products. Too much fertility can encourage softer growth and reduce the tough, low-maintenance character that makes this native grass so useful.
When and how should I prune Purple Love Grass?
Cut or rake back Purple Love Grass in late winter or early spring before new growth begins. Because it is a warm-season grass, new growth may appear later in spring once soil temperatures warm. If you want to reduce reseeding, remove seed heads after flowering before they fully mature and drop. If you want a natural meadow effect, leave the seed heads standing through fall and winter.
