It seems like spring will never get here, but we know it will. You should be ready to cut back ornamental grasses. Usually late February into mid-March is a good time to do this. Cool season grasses will show growth first and will need attention first. With the good snow cover we have had this winter, many of the cool season grasses may emerge from the snow looking fairly good and may need relatively little cutting. Some of them however, may have been mashed down by the snow load and may need to be tidied up.

Warm season grasses will be slower to start growing, so you won't have to get cutting on them quite as early. When it is time cut them (just as new growth begins to peek out of the soil), cut them all the way to the ground and get rid of all the old growth.

If you need to know more about ornamental grasses, why not attend my class on that topic on February 25 from 7-9 p.m.? To register go to https://webs.extension.uiuc.edu/registration/?RegistrationID=2273. The cost is $7.00