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Perennial ornamental grasses are often recommended for rain gardens, but few data support their use. We conducted two experiments to evaluate the ability of ornamental grass cultivars to grow while subjected to cyclical flooding, submergence, and drought typical of rain gardens. Our objectives were to determine the effects of cyclical flood and drought (Expt. 1) and submergence depth and duration (Expt. 2) on grass growth and survival. Seven cultivars were evaluated during greenhouse trials, including Pixie Fountain tufted hairgrass [Deschampsia cespitosa (L.) P. Beauv.], Northwind switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.), Red October big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii Vitman), Purpurascens Chinese silvergrass (Miscanthus sinensis Andersson), Blue Heaven^® little bluestem [Schizachyrium scoparium (Michx.) Nash], Blonde Ambition blue grama grass [Bouteloua gracilis (Kunth) Lag. ex Griffiths], and Karl Foerster feather reed grass [Calamagrostis ×acutiflora (Schrad.) DC]. During Expt. 1, grasses underwent four cycles of flooding duration (2 days or 7 days) followed by drought (drying to volumetric soil water contents of 0.14 or 0.07 cm³·cm⁻³). During Expt. 2, grasses were cyclically submerged at 15 or 30 cm above the soil surface for 2, 4, or 7 days, followed by floodwater removal and drainage for 2 days before being resubmerged. Cyclical submergence continued until the 7-day submergence treatments completed four cycles. Both experiments were replicated in a full factorial randomized complete block design. Controls were included in both experiments. Plants were measured to determine plant height, shoot count, visual damage rating, shoot dry weight, and root dry weight. Floodwater chemistry and soil reducing conditions were measured during Expt. 2. Chinese silvergrass and switchgrass survived cyclical soil flooding/drought and submergence for 7 days at a depth of 30 cm while maintaining acceptable foliar damage. All grasses survived cyclical flood and drought when the soil volumetric water content was maintained at 14%, suggesting they can withstand periodic soil flooding as long as the water is not too deep. As water depth and duration increased from 4 days to 7 days, little bluestem, blue grama grass, and feather reed grass experienced significant foliar damage. Tufted hair grass and big bluestem experienced significant foliar damage when submerged for 2 days. Our results showed that perennial ornamental grasses can tolerate cyclical flood and drought and periodic submergence, but that plant conditions and survival vary, which can inform strategic plant placement within rain gardens, bioretention basins, and other stormwater management systems.

Although sedges (Carex L. spp.) are commonly recommended for planting in rain gardens, little work has been carried out in evaluating the ability of sedge species to tolerate the challenging moisture fluctuations in this environment. Seven sedge species native to the north central United States, yellow fox sedge [Carex annectens (E.P. Bicknell) E.P. Bicknell], plains oval sedge [Carex brevior (Dewey) Mack. ex Lunell], gray’s sedge (Carex grayi J. Carey), porcupine sedge (Carex hystericina Muhl. ex Willd.), palm sedge (Carex muskingumensis Schwein.), pennsylvania sedge (Carex pensylvanica Lam.), and sprengel’s sedge (Carex sprengelii Dewey ex Spreng.), were evaluated in a greenhouse trial to determine their ability to tolerate repeated flooding and drought cycles. Treatments consisted of two flood periods (2 or 7 days), followed by one of three drought set points measured by volumetric water content (VWC) thresholds of 0.05 (severe drought), 0.10 (moderate drought), or 0.15 m³·m⁻³ (drought onset). Each plant was subjected to a minimum of four flooding and drought cycles. For sprengel’s sedge, plains oval sedge, gray’s sedge, and yellow fox sedge, there was no significant difference in shoot counts between severe drought, moderate drought, and drought onset treatments. Shoot mass and root mass for all sedge species were significantly reduced under the severe drought set point. Plants subjected to the 7-day flood treatment exhibited significantly increased shoot mass compared with those in the 2-day flood treatment. Plains oval sedge showed a significantly higher shoot mass than all other species under all treatments. Visible damage ratings suggest that sprengel’s sedge, plains oval sedge, gray’s sedge, and yellow fox sedge could be suitable for the rain garden environment under all but the most extreme drought conditions. Results show that plains oval sedge, yellow fox sedge, and gray’s sedge may be able to tolerate harsh flooding and drought cycles that can occur in rain gardens. For the remaining species, supplemental irrigation of rain gardens should be considered during drought.