Blue Fescue

Blue Fescue (Festuca glauca) brings a colour almost nothing else in the garden offers: tight, tufted mounds of fine steel blue foliage, each about 25cm tall and 30cm across. It is the designer's grass for edging, rockeries and massed drifts, holding its silvery blue all year with next to no care. Frost hardy, drought tolerant and happy in poor soil and salt air, it earns its place anywhere summers are dry rather than steamy.

Why you'll love it

• True blue foliage. The intense steel blue reads as a deliberate design choice, striking against dark mulch, gravel, concrete or burgundy foliage plants.
• A neat, fixed size. Every plant makes the same tidy 25cm dome, so borders and patterns stay crisp without trimming.
• Thrives on neglect. Poor soil, drought, frost, salt wind and reflected heat off paving all suit it; rich watered beds are actually worse for its colour.
• Pet friendly. Safe around cats and dogs, and the soft tufts survive the occasional trampling.
• Perfect in repetition. Massed at 300mm spacings it creates the ribbon and grid effects landscape designers charge for.

Where it works best

Borders and edging. Plant 300mm apart along a path or bed front for an unbroken blue ribbon; a 6m edge takes 20 plants.

Rockeries and gravel gardens. Its natural habitat: sharp drainage, full sun and heat radiating off stone.

Mass planting. Drifts of 10 or more between pavers, down a dry bank or across a nature strip make the strongest statement.

Pots and troughs. A row of blue domes in a long trough is an instant modern balcony planter.

Growing Blue Fescue in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun keeps the blue intense; shade turns it green and floppy. It performs in cool temperate, warm temperate, Mediterranean and dry inland climates. In the humid subtropics it sulks through summer, so lean on native blue grasses there instead.

Soil. Free draining is non negotiable: sandy, gravelly and poor soils are ideal, and wet feet in winter is the one reliable killer. On clay, plant into mounds or raised beds.

Water and feed. Water weekly until established, then only in long dry spells. Skip the fertiliser; hard rations keep the colour sharpest.

Maintenance. Comb or shear the clumps in late winter to remove old foliage. Clumps can be lifted and divided every few years if centres thin.

What to expect when it arrives

Blue Fescue ships in 140mm pots in packs of 10, sized and priced for the massed planting it does best. The plants arrive as established tufts already showing their blue, settle in fast and reach full size within a season. Delivery is Australia wide, from $29.95,, so pair packs with the rest of a garden order. Every plant carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Browse grasses and strappy leaf plants
• More plants for rockeries
• Drought tolerant plants for dry gardens

Common questions

Why is my blue fescue turning green?

Too much shade, water or fertiliser. Full sun and lean, dry conditions produce the steel blue; pampering produces green.

Does it need cutting back like other grasses?

Just a tidy. Comb out or lightly shear the old foliage in late winter and the clump refreshes itself. Never cut it to the ground like a miscanthus.

Will it self seed everywhere?

No. The flower heads are modest, seedlings are few, and it is not considered weedy anywhere in Australia. It stays where you put it.

How long does each plant live?

Clumps typically look their best for four to six years, then centres thin. Divide them in autumn and replant the vigorous outer sections for a free replacement border.