Panicum elegans QIS® Sprinkles | Fiber Optic Grass | Switchgrass

Panicum elegans QIS® Sprinkles | Fiber Optic Grass (Switchgrass)

Productive. Airy. Sparkling.
One of the most profitable and high-yielding grasses for cut flower growers, Panicum elegans QIS® Sprinkles delivers bucket after bucket of shimmering stems for over 6 weeks from a single planting. Its tall, upright green stems are crowned with sparkling, silvery seed heads that resemble fiber optic lights — delicate and eye-catching.

Also known as fiber optic grass, this airy, ornamental annual is an essential filler for bouquets, wedding work, and textural arrangements.

Key Features

• Plant type: Annual
• Height: 60–90 cm (24–36 in)
• Site: Full sun
• Days to maturity: 90–110 days
• Spacing: 22 cm
  
• Pinching: Not required
• Vase life: 7–10 days
• Productivity: Extremely high – multiple harvests from one planting
• Bloom time: Mid to late summer

Sowing & Growing Instructions

• Start indoors 6 weeks before last frost
• Sow on the surface of moist, well-drained compost – do not bury deeply
• Maintain a temperature of 15°C
  
• Germination in approximately 7 days
• Transplant to larger modules or pots once established
• Harden off and plant outdoors after all danger of frost has passed
• Thrives in fertile, well-drained soil in full sun

Tip: For a continuous summer harvest, sow in 3 successions spaced 3–4 weeks apart.

Harvesting Tips

Harvest at almost any stage – from early emerging seed heads to fully opened plumes. The more mature the stems, the larger and more dramatic the effect. Suitable for fresh or dried arrangements.