Quick answer
Good dwarf grasses for landscaping include blue fescue, dwarf fountain grass, Japanese forest grass, Japanese sedge, Pennsylvania sedge and mondo grass. There is no strict definition of “dwarf,” but nurseries generally mean grasses under about 2 to 3 feet tall. For shade, the best compact choices are mostly sedges, mondo grass and Japanese forest grass. For sun, look to blue fescue and compact fountain grasses.
Dwarf grasses for sun
These prefer full sun to part sun and well-drained soil.
- Blue fescue (Festuca glauca), such as ‘Elijah Blue’ or ‘Boulder Blue’. Tidy blue-gray tufts roughly 6 to 12 inches tall and wide (more in blue ornamental grasses). Often used for edging and rock gardens. It likes well-drained soil and tolerates dry spells once established.
- Dwarf fountain grass (Pennisetum alopecuroides), such as ‘Hameln’. A compact fountain grass with soft bottlebrush plumes, commonly listed at around 2 to 3 feet. Smaller selections like ‘Little Bunny’ are shorter. Often hardy in about zones 5 to 9.
- Blue oat grass (Helictotrichon sempervirens). Blue-gray foliage, about 2 feet tall, with tan seed heads above in early summer.
- Little bluestem cultivars like ‘The Blues’. Roughly 2 feet tall, with blue foliage and red tones in fall.
- Prairie dropseed (Sporobolus heterolepis). A fine-textured mound of foliage, about 2 to 3 feet in bloom.
- Dwarf zebra grass ‘Little Zebra’. A smaller miscanthus with horizontal gold banding, though it still reaches 3 to 4 feet tall.
Dwarf grasses for shade and part shade
- Japanese forest grass (Hakonechloa macra). About 12 to 18 inches tall, with cascading leaves. Gold cultivars brighten shade. See our care guide to Japanese forest grass.
- Japanese sedges (Carex oshimensis ‘Evergold’, ‘Everillo’, ‘Everest’). Typically 10 to 19 inches tall, evergreen in milder climates and good in containers. More in our guide to Carex for shade.
- Pennsylvania sedge (Carex pensylvanica). 6 to 18 inches, a soft native groundcover for dry to average shade.
- Mondo grass (Ophiopogon japonicus) and dwarf mondo. Anywhere from about 2 to 12 inches tall depending on type; a neat evergreen groundcover. Compare it with liriope in liriope vs mondo grass.
- Sweet flag (Acorus gramineus ‘Ogon’). Gold-and-green blades about 6 to 15 inches tall, for moist soil.
- ‘Greenlee Hybrid’ moor grass (Sesleria). About 8 to 12 inches tall, good for light to part shade.
How to use dwarf grasses
- Edging: blue fescue, mondo grass and small sedges line paths and bed fronts neatly. See small ornamental grasses for borders and edging.
- Containers: many compact grasses suit pots and give year-round texture, especially evergreen sedges.
- Rock gardens: blue fescue and dwarf fountain grass work well in sunny, well-drained spots, including gravel gardens.
- Groundcover: Pennsylvania sedge, mondo grass and moor grass can form a low carpet.
- Mixed borders: use as a soft filler at the front of a perennial bed.
Choosing and caring for small grasses
Check the mature width as well as the height, since some “dwarf” grasses still spread widely. Most need well-drained soil, and sun lovers will flop in too much shade. Water regularly in the first year, and cut back old foliage in late winter or early spring. Evergreen types usually need only a tidy-up. Divide clumps every few years if the center thins out.
For help choosing by light level, see our overview of ornamental grasses for shade and part shade.