Illustration
Pink Muhly Grass
Muhlenbergia capillaris
Also called pink hair grass and gulf muhly
Also comes in red.
Pink Muhly Grass blooms from September through November.
Months here are Northern Hemisphere months; in the Southern Hemisphere, shift them by six months.
Growing Pink Muhly Grass
Plant it in full sun. It prefers low water. It is hardy in USDA zones 5–9. Expect it to reach about 2.5 ft tall and 2.5 ft wide at maturity, in roughly 3 years (a house reading).
Pets
- Not yet checked for pets.
Lists differ and none is complete. If a pet eats a plant and seems unwell, call a veterinarian or a pet poison helpline.
No toxicity note is on file for Pink Muhly Grass. That is not a clearance: check its safety for people and pets before planting.
What was checked
Nine facts were checked against named botanical sources, each recorded beside the sources that carried it: mature height and spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color, the trait tags, and years to mature size, which rests on a recorded house rule where no publisher states one and is marked so. Soil, diseases, pests, toxicity and the plant's own names have not yet been read for this plant, and its trait tags are the ones a feature uses rather than every word a page prints. Each fact above carries its own mark. 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 Pink Muhly Grass
Plant Pink Muhly 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 7, the middle of its hardy zones 5 to 9, spring means March to May and fall means September or October. Once settled, it blooms from September to November.
Month-by-month timing for your zone is on the planting calendar; if you garden near zone 7, the middle of this plant's hardy range, start with zone 7 in March. Derived from the plant's category, zones and bloom months plus typical zone frost dates, not checked separately.
How big does Pink Muhly Grass get?
2.5 fttall5 ft 7 inan adult2.5 ftwideSee Pink Muhly 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 Pink Muhly Grass
Derived from the mature spread above by a fixed rule, not checked separately: spacing is the spread, center to center.
Space Pink Muhly Grass about 2.5 ft apart, center to center, so each plant has room to reach its full width.
Add Pink Muhly 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
Pink Muhly Grass' height, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags were checked against 8 published sources on October 19, 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 Gardenheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags
- abnativeplants.comAmerican Beauties Native Plantsheight, spread, hardiness zones, water, bloom months and color and trait tags
- NC State Extensionheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, bloom months and color and trait tags
- hoffmannursery.comHoffman Nurseryheight, hardiness zones, water and bloom months and color
- Plant Addictsheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun and water
- University of Illinois ExtensionIllinois Extensionwater, bloom months and color and trait tags
- RHSRoyal Horticultural Societysun and bloom months and color
- ag.missouristate.eduMissouri State Universitybloom months and color
How the checking works, and what each standard covers, is on the verified plants page.
Where it grows wild
Native to 27 states
United States: Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia and 15 more
Recorded growing wild in 344 counties.
Range data from the World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 4.0, adapted) and USDA PLANTS. How the native range is credited.
1 more variety in the Muhly Grass group
Same genus, similar care - pick the one you are growing.
Across the group, bloom runs from September through November: Pink Muhly Grass opens first (September) and is also the last to finish (November).
Compare every variety in the Muhly Grass group
Every figure is the variety's own page fact. Tap a name to open it.
| Variety | Color | Blooms | Hardiness | Sun | Size (H × W) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pink Muhlythis page | Pink | Sep–Nov | Zones 5–9 | Full sun | 2.5 ft × 2.5 ft |
| Undaunted Muhly | Pink | Sep–Oct | Zones 5–9 | Full sun | 2.5 ft × 2.5 ft |
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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.