This photo, from Floridata, is as close to the actual colors of both White and Pink Cortaderia as I've seen:

Pink is in front of White, and as you can see, both colors could be described as 'dirty.'

I've never seen actual specimens as bright and pure as the nursery photos.

I would feel better if it was some kind of hybrid. This is likely too aggressive in California.

You should not be planting ANY type of pampas grass in California. It is considered extremely invasive. And I agree that the pink plumed form is not very pink - certainly not the candy pink of the color-enhanced Burpees catalog - more of a washed out, pale pink as seen in Donn's photo.

If you want pink plumes or seedheads, there are a good number of Miscanthus cultivars (NOT listed as CA invasives) that will accomplish that for you and with much better coloring than the pampas grass.

There is a lovely patch of pink Pampas grass growing for years near where I live (Southern Ontario, Canada) and it really is a beautiful light cotton candy pink, not dirty pink. I don't know if there are different cultivars or if it is the cooler climate that accounts for the colour difference, but it really is pretty here. It likely would be invasive though because this patch is about 25' across in our climate where it has to be mulched and likely a lot freezes out, so given the proper climate it probably takes over the world. It can also be grown in a planter though so that it doesn't have a chance to become invasive-like you would with mint.

The pink blooming grass you describe sounds very beautiful, but I'm not sure that it could be Cortaderia in zone 5 surviving for years. The hardiest varieties are iffy in zone 6 and the species is only hardy to zone 7 at best.

There are some miscanthus varieties that get some nice pinkish plumes. Could that be what these are?

The problem is it grows into a monster giant in zone 10. If it was more compact like other smaller grasses, the color is so pretty. We have it as a weed in San Francisco, and along highway one. But, the weeds one are not a pretty color, a dirty white or a dirty purple.

I just planted pink pampas seed to plant outdoors in spring Will they bloom this year? and what can I expect the first year?

Here is a link that might be useful: GardenWeb

kota, where are you located? Pampas grass is not winter hardy in a large part of the US, typically requiring a zone 7 or above climate. And it takes several years from seed to achieve a blooming size. Seeds germinate rapidly, but all you will see the first year are leaf blades.

I live in southwestern Ontario-near Windsor

Sorry, but I don't think you are going to have much luck with pampas grass (Cortaderia selloana) in your area - too cold :-) You may get some growth this season, but chances of it overwintering long enough to reach flowering size are slim. The dwarf form ('Pumila') is often listed as the hardiest but even that only to zone 6.....and it only offers cream colored plumes.

I planted Pink Pampas Grass seed too this past spring - sold by McKenzie seeds. The package says hardy to Zone 5 which is what I am here NW of Guelph Ontario. McKenzie is from Brandon Manitoba which probably has a colder zone than me!I never did get mine in the ground but they have done very well in the pots and are nice thick clumps. I'm not sure what to do with them for the winter. Maybe I will try planting one now and mulching it well. Or maybe I should just sink the pots in the ground and mulch them. Any ideas?

McKenzie's package is wrong.

As has been pointed out upthread, C. selloana is not hardy in zone 5. It won't matter if you install your plants directly in the ground, or in their pots in the ground. You can't mulch them enough to have them survive a zone 5 winter.

Will Pink Pampas Grass grow in zone 6? Do you need to cut any type pampas grass back yearly and when do you do this? I just moved into a home that has pampas and I love the look but do not know how to take care of it. We get cold weather (20's and 30's) in the winter, hot and humid in the summer

Becky..as indicated in at least 3 posts in this thread, it will not be hardy in your zone. It may grow for the warm season, but will not survive the winter.

If you have a Pampas-like grass in your garden, it is likely not Pink Pampas, AKA Cortaderia. It may be a Miscanthus variety. Can you post photos of it?

Perennial ornamental grasses need to be cut down to a few inches in height, in late winter to early spring, before they start re-growing.

My pink pampass gras was a dirty coplor and the plume was not that large and was weak. iT became a ratty soggy thing with the first rain. It was two truckloads of stuff to dig it out and I shed a lot of blood doing it. it is classified as a YUCKY NASTY ill behaved plant in my garden. It froze back every year and I had to cut off, those nasty sharp swordlike blades and get rid of the mass. NO FUN.

Becky. Although pampas grass is not said to thrive in zone 6, and though other gardeners may disagree, I have successfully grown pampas grass in zone 6 (Athens, Ohio). Not only did it thrive, the patch was very large (and it was not Miscanthus). One thing that must be noted is that because Athens is very hilly, plants may receive additional protection from the elements- which may have contributed to my success. To be safe, I would not invest too much money in planting pink pampas grass. Treat it as an experiment and you won't be too disappointed if it doesn't do well.

I love pampas grass and have seen it grow, and grow well in Southern Ontario (London region)