Your first question is tough. It needs more detail to be answered. Why 'Graziella' for the back? Are you attracted to it's size, or it's form, or it's early bloom? Will you stagger the next row so they appear to be between the Miscanthus?

2nd question..tall grasses for moist areas. There are quite a few. Most Miscanthus can deal with a moist area if it is well drained. Same with most Calamagrostis varieties. Chasmanthium latifolium works in moist and part sun sites. Others are Molinia and Pennisetum orientale (not overly tall). Arundo donax may also work. It's rated to zone 6, but there are folks on this forum growing it in zone 5.

Overwinter the potted grasses by burying them, in their pots, in the ground. That will protect them, and make them easy to move in spring.

I am attracted to the size as well as the early bloom of the Graziella. I was thinking of doing a staggered row of the Graziella and then a fairly straight row (not sure) of the one in front. Do you recommend something other than Graziella?

I'll look up your suggestions on the tall/moist grasses. Thanks. The water might be standing part of the spring. DH says he can remedy that by building it up a little (there is a stream that run nearby that has poorly delineated edges, it really needs to be dug out so it flows rather than scatters). Do you think the Calamagrostis Karl Foerster would work?

Buring the pots sounds easy enough. We have an area that is all sand (easy to dig). Should I just bury them as if I was planting them? Maybe add a layer of straw after the ground freezes?

Thanks for the help. I've never done grasses before, so this is very new to me.

Sue, I'm not suggesting something other than 'Graziella,' but if you like this grass, you might consider putting it in the front row, so you can better admire it, and put something taller behind it. If you keep it in back, consider offset planting, so the grasses in front don't block the view of those in back. Consider a grass with a different form, perhaps more erect, like 'Karl Foerster' or one of the Panicum virgatum varieties. Consider also a grass with a different color, or something variegated.

Bluestem, linked below, says that 'Karl Foerster' can grow in fresh water bogs, so it should be able to tolerate wet conditions. I do, however, like the idea of building a raised bed, because it would not only help with drainage, but set off the grass(es) as well.

If the grasses in pots are hardy to your zone, all you need to do is bury them. A sandy area is great, because you won't run the risk of poor drainage damaging the plants. Just dig trenches, line up the pots a few inches apart, and backfill. I don't think you need to mulch them.

Here is a link that might be useful: Bluestem

Thanks for the help.

I have Graziella in the back corner of my small suburban lot. G.is by far the tallest plant in this area, reaching at least 4 ft taller than my standard size fence when in bloom. My soil is heavy clay and the lot slopes downward to this corner. Although the area does not lay in water, it is almost always damp and G. does very well here.

To the side of it I have several Henry Garnet Iteas, which start getting reddish in August and keep their very colorful leaves well into late fall. On the other side I have another Itea, a Red Prince Weigela, a Cotinus Royal Purple used as a cutback shrub, a Miss Kim dwarf Lilac, and staggered around the area are 3 Knockout roses, some dark red daylilies, and some low growing evergreens.

In the very front of the bed, just off center of Graziella, and on slightly higer ground is Panicum virgatum 'Shenandoah'. The panicum is very wide & much taller than the surrounding shrubs. It marks the path entry into this back garden.

The flowering shrubs & daylilies provide some early color, but the grasses are the focal point in late summer and fall. The wonderful fall color of the Itea and sporadic blooms of the roses & weigela play off the red burgandy color of the Panicum and waving above it all are the shiny whitish flowers of Graziella. This is one of my favorite combos and is nearly maintenance free.