Pampas grass plants are tolerant of drought ... in the clumps of grass at the base of the plant to scare away any small creatures. To cut back, lop everything off, leaving only about 6 to 8 ...

This very confusion was evident on Reddit this week when a user posted an innocent-looking photo of his parents' front garden, asking: "Were your parents, like mine, proud of their pampas grass?" ...

"Were your parents, like mine, proud of their pampas grass?" he posted in the CasualUK subreddit. It prompted one person to quip: "Don't forget to leave your keys in the bowl on your way in." ...