Nassella Species, Silky Thread Grass, Mexican Feather Grass, Mexican Needle Grass, Pony Tails

On Apr 23, 2020, arPie47 from Plano, TX,
United States wrote:

The previous owners of our house left a couple of clumps of this in a pot, and there had been a drought, so they appeared dead. We were too busy for awhile to deal with it, but left it in an area where it didn't get rain or much light, intending to salvage the pot later. About 2 years later there was a storm that was windy enough to blow quite a bit of rainwater into that pot, and the grass came to life, much to our surprise. It was pretty, so we planted it. Now in its 4th season in the flower bed it has choked out everything else except some red yuccas, and it's beginning to invade in other areas. We would like to let it continue in an otherwise dead zone along the driveway, but are wondering how to remove it from other places. It's about as tenacious a plant as we've seen in this north T... read moreexas climate. We have learned that if you see a little clump act fast or it will take over everything around it. It's used in the Dallas area along highway embankments to prevent erosion, but I wonder how long it will be before it will jump to everybody's yard.

On Oct 8, 2018, MtnGardener from Longmont, CO (Zone 5a) wrote:

In zone 4, at 5000' altitude in clay soil I was unable to keep this plant alive. It does not seem to be able to withstand the wind and the very dry conditions. Would recommend treating this as an annual in similar zones.

On Mar 1, 2016, coriaceous from ROSLINDALE, MA wrote:

Native to west Texas, New Mexico, Mexico, Chile, and Argentina, this species has been deemed an emerging threat to natural habitat in California (where it is not native), where it has escaped cultivation and is well on the way to becoming the next Pampas grass.

This is a weed in its native range where land is disturbed as by overgrazing. It forms indigestible balls in the stomach of stock and, if they are forced to graze the infested pasture, they may lose weight and die, as Nassella tenuissima has a high fibre content and a low nutritive value.

This is a prohibited species in Australia, where it has naturalized despite being quarantined.

It has also naturalized in New Zealand, South Africa, France, and Italy.

... read moreissg.org/database/species/ecology.asp?si=463" target="_dgnew"rel="nofollow">http://www.issg.org/database/species/ecology.asp?si=463
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On May 20, 2014, AunTee from East Oakdale, CA wrote:

PROS: beautiful to watch wave in the wind. Easy to plant, grow and reseed (does on its own) Drought tolerant and great for rocky xeriscapes. SUGGESTION: perfect for large areas or acreages needing soil retention, hillsides, empty lots with poor soil and little irrigation. It'll spread on its own and you'll have to do nothing.
CONS: DO NOT PLANT AROUND POOLS OR PONDS with pumps. The thread will blow into water and clog up filters. It'll stick to your clothing, gloves, hair. DO NOT plant if you have dogs or cats that like to sniff around everything. Our little Terrier mix got one or two of the threads up her nose and that began a 24-hour sneeze fest for her. It'd stop for awhile then start up again. It exhausted her and she didn't know what was going on. The next day we took her to ou... read morer vet (soonest we could) along with samples of threads. Doc put a numbing gel down nostrils and took a look with a scope. She couldn't find anything, but the gel and scope must have unlodged the barb and she was able to pass it (we assume). Her ordeal was over, with a $90 vet bill. NEXT TIME, I'll know to use saline rinse and/or a NasaGel spray and start flushing her nose immediately. BUGS like sow bugs and snails love to live in undergrowth if you water too much. SUGGESTION: remove clumps of hair (flowers) when you can and deadhead in August. You can deadhead anytime if you don't want it to reseed, but it won't look the same unless you can cut along its natural line. PULL UP babies as you see and toss OR do what I do: I pot them up and sell to folks with hillside properties that want beauty that takes no effort except initial planting and watering once a week during first month or so. IN AUSTRALIA they've banned this plant and it's labeled as a noxious weed. I had to laugh at the thought of it taking over the entire Outback. It's not native there so they're very strict. It got into country being mislabeled. They say it produces 700,000 to 1 million seeds A MONTH in their climate. In some areas where it's taken over, they torch it. How'd that be on the barbie?!!

On Jan 10, 2014, BeatenObamacare from Albuquerque, NM wrote:

Your neighbors will hate you for planting Mexican Feather Grass, or Thread Grass. It will be growing all over the place-and is not at all easy to pull up in the dry alkaline soils we have.
It may wave in the wind beautifully, but do you really want it everywhere in the landscape?

On May 21, 2012, hampson from Kingman, AZ (Zone 8b) wrote:

I planted more than one in a perennial bed that gets watered regularly. It's lovely, but it sure does reseed! I pull and hoe out the seedlings from my beds, but my husband lets many seedlings go in his naturalized dry, desert areas. It's pretty easy to pull up and worth the effort, but I remove as much seed fluff as I can now and often shear the seed heads off. Absolutely beautiful to watch in the wind.

On Jan 22, 2011, dvangogh from Los Angeles, CA (Zone 10b) wrote:

This is a beautiful grass, though invasive as others have mentioned. The movement of the plant as a light breeze catches it is just beautiful to watch. Very calming and can add a dynamic touch to your garden.

On Jun 28, 2010, 1e9l3h7 from Rio Rancho, NM wrote:

plant grows well here ,'west mesa in albuquerque. no problem with reseeding have divided to get four new plants. Looks good in winter.

On Mar 11, 2010, zsir from Chula Vista, CA wrote:

I put one of these in a small backyard garden because I liked it visually and the way it moves in the wind. I thought it a harmless carefree addition. You'd think it ideal for Xeriscape or rock gardens. However it reseeds like crazy, and this from just one plant. Put 4 -5 or more in and you will have alot of extra work on your hands come early spring. I'll be sure to research before I try any other ornamental grasses. Proceed with caution with this choice.

On May 20, 2009, anelson77 from Seattle, WA wrote:

beautiful sensuous grass which adapts to a variety of conditions, sun, part shade, dry poor soil. Reseeds and spreads but not difficult to control.

On Jun 21, 2008, lonediver from Maricopa, AZ (Zone 9b) wrote:

I will agree with most of the aforementioned statements , durable , beautiful and so on . But I also see that it is labeled as INVASIVE . I capitalize that with good reason . Here in the southwest desert and this is not a native plant . I planted 6 of them and now have had 100's of them all over my property (4 acres ) in an area that recieves less than 10 inches of rainfall a year and this stuff is sprouting up with no irragation . More so in areas that does . Once released it will scatter more than likely and add more fuel to already disastrous wildfires .

On May 7, 2008, SWNMgardener from Las Cruces, NM wrote:

I really loved the look of this grass in our landscape. It grows quite well in the desert southwest with some irrigation. But beware if you have puppies that like to grab at anything that moves. One of our puppies grabbed at some seeds/feathers that had fallen to the ground and nearly choked while trying to swallow them. We were unable to find any in it's mouth to remove, so I don't believe it had very much.
Also, this plant is a favorite of jackrabbits, so it's best grown behind a fenced area or chicken wire.

On Mar 3, 2007, RHSJONES from Grand Junction, CO wrote:

this was one of the first plants I put in my new garden because it is so beautiful in the wind and I am in a windy area. It did very well even through our cold winter but I fear I have baby's all around it! will try and transplant them to my other garden. did well in composted heavy clay and was watered by drip only once a week even in hot weather.

On Aug 6, 2004, dh1234 from Atwater, CA wrote:

My comment is postive based on growability in the Central Valley of California. The only thing I don't care for, my wife loves it, is it sows itself all over the place. Otherwise a very durable plant.

On Jul 1, 2002, lupinelover from Grove City, OH (Zone 6a) wrote:

The hardiness of this grass seems to depend on the age. Clumps that have not flowered are much hardier, making this a biennial for me. Usually the clumps that have flowered do not survive the winter.

The flower stalks and seeds are very sticky so that seeding around is very common.

Seeds sprout in mid to late spring outdoors.