I'm needing the answer to that one myself. I posted a few days ago, but nobody has replied. I just planted mine last year, but so far there's no growth showing yet. All my other grasses are growing fine.

Laurel

Look down into the crown of the plant...do you see any green growth in there? Try to wiggle the plant at its base...is it firmly rooted, or does it wiggle quite a bit?

Pampas grass has been a slow starter for me, here in zone 8, so you should probably give it a bit longer. I had a few tall ornamental grasses go belly up on me this year...they didn't come back. When I started to dig them up to check the root systems, they literally popped right outta the ground with little effort. However, when I dug out my pampas to check, it gave me a fight. It was very firmly rooted and was producing healthy new roots. I moved it to an area where it gets more sun and it is finally producing new leaves. I've noticed that established clumps don't take so long to green up. My brother has his backyard fence lined with pampas grass. The grass has been there for years and they always come back for him early in the growing season.

Hope this has helped. Good Luck.

It was slow to come back here in Nebraska Z4/5 too, this year. But finally, it is now about 2-3 foot tall. I think everything is slower this year. Iris are finishing up, peonies are blooming good now, as well as some lilies. My Hagley Hybred and Lasurstern clematis are blooming great at this time. I've only seen 1 hummingbird, and that was on May 5th. Really a bummer. I guess that is an over all of my floweres and Pampas Grass. Really more than you wanted, but... Oh Yes, my Karly Rose is about 1 1/2 foot tall too. I am glad it made it through our Z4/5 winter.