Illustration
Purple Fountain Grass
Pennisetum setaceum 'Rubrum'
Purple Fountain Grass blooms from July through October.
Months here are Northern Hemisphere months; in the Southern Hemisphere, shift them by six months.
Growing Purple Fountain Grass
Plant it in full sun. It prefers low water. It is hardy in USDA zones 9–11. Expect it to reach about 4 ft tall and 3 ft wide at maturity, in roughly 1 year (not yet checked).
No toxicity note is on file for Purple Fountain Grass. That is not a clearance: check its safety for people and pets before planting.
What was checked
Mature height and spread, hardiness zones, sun and the trait tags were checked against named botanical sources for this plant. The bloom months and water need on this page were not, and each fact above says which. The planting, spacing and size sections are derived from these checked facts by a fixed rule, not checked separately, and the plant type is the library's own classification.
When to plant Purple Fountain Grass
Plant Purple Fountain Grass in early spring as soon as the soil is workable, or in early fall at least six weeks before your first frost, so roots establish in cool weather. In zone 9, the middle of its hardy zones 9 to 11, spring means January to March and fall means October or November. Once settled, it blooms from July to October.
Month-by-month timing for your zone is on the planting calendar; if you garden near zone 9, the middle of this plant's hardy range, start with zone 9 in January. Derived from the plant's category, zones and bloom months plus typical zone frost dates, not checked separately.
How big does Purple Fountain Grass get?
4 fttall5 ft 7 inan adult3 ftwideSee Purple Fountain Grass in a garden plan: the planner shows it in 3D beside everything else you add, growing toward this size over the years.
How far apart to plant Purple Fountain Grass
Derived from the mature spread above by a fixed rule, not checked separately: spacing is the spread, center to center.
Space Purple Fountain Grass about 3 ft apart, center to center, so each plant has room to reach its full width.
Add Purple Fountain Grass to a garden plan and the planner draws it at its full width, so you see the spacing before you buy.
Where these facts come from
Purple Fountain Grass' height, spread, hardiness zones, sun and trait tags were checked against 4 published sources on July 29, 2026. Each one is linked below with every fact it carried, which can include a fact this page still marks as not yet checked, because a source carrying a value is not the same as the value being held to the standard. Facts not in that list, and the planting, spacing and size sections, are not covered by these sources.
- Missouri Botanical GardenPlant Finderheight, spread, hardiness zones and sun
- Monroviaheight, spread, sun and trait tags
- Proven WinnersGraceful Grasses Purple Fountain Grassheight, spread, sun and trait tags
- NC State Extensionspecies page, Cenchrus setaceushardiness zones, sun and trait tags
How the checking works, and what each standard covers, is on the verified plants page.
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Design a garden with this
Drop this plant onto a 3D plan, see how it fills in, and watch your whole garden bloom across the year.