Lakeshore Garden Centres Plant Finder

Description:

A superb plant with very curious twisted, spiraling foliage, well suited to aquatic containers and boggy, poorly drained areas; best used in the foreground or in a container

Ornamental Features

Curly Wurly Corkscrew Rush is primarily valued in the garden for its ornamental upright and spreading habit of growth. It features subtle bracted brown frilly flowers at the ends of the stems from early summer to early fall. Its attractive twisted grassy leaves remain green in colour throughout the season.

Landscape Attributes

Curly Wurly Corkscrew Rush is an open herbaceous annual with an upright spreading habit of growth. Its relatively fine texture sets it apart from other garden plants with less refined foliage.

This is a relatively low maintenance plant, and is best pruned in late winter once the threat of extreme cold has passed. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Curly Wurly Corkscrew Rush is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• Border Edging
• General Garden Use
• Container Planting
• Bog Gardens

Planting & Growing

Curly Wurly Corkscrew Rush will grow to be about 18 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 18 inches. Its foliage tends to remain dense right to the ground, not requiring facer plants in front. Although it's not a true annual, this fast-growing plant can be expected to behave as an annual in our climate if left outdoors over the winter, usually needing replacement the following year. As such, gardeners should take into consideration that it will perform differently than it would in its native habitat.

This plant does best in full sun to partial shade. It prefers to grow in moist to wet soil, and will even tolerate some standing water. It is not particular as to soil type, but has a definite preference for acidic soils, and is able to handle environmental salt. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments. This is a selection of a native North American species.

Curly Wurly Corkscrew Rush is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. It is often used as a 'filler' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination, providing a mass of flowers and foliage against which the larger thriller plants stand out. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.