Landscape Design with Groundcovers

After a wet spring, not only are all garden plants growing vigorously, so are the weeds. At these times, I enjoy the areas planted with groundcovers: lush growth, very few weeds, and sometimes spectacular blooms. There are so many types of groundcovers, ranging from prostrate woody shrubs to vines and spreading perennials. The perennials can be as large as hostas or as low-growing as the plants referred to as “Stepables”.

Groundcovers provide solutions for steep slopes, unattractive features in the landscape, dry and poor soil, deep shade or hot and dry areas. They can grow in root zones of large trees and serve as lawn substitutes. Groundcovers prevent erosions on slopes and restrict weed growth by their dense growing habit. In hot and dry areas, groundcovers shade the soil and keep the ground moist.

But groundcovers are not only useful, they can add beauty to your garden and remove weeding from your life. It usually takes 1-3 years to achieve a dense cover that bars weeds. Groundcovers can be used as living carpets around shrubs, trees or garden ornaments or in patches or ribbons as transition zones between paving and lawn and beds of shrubs or perennials. You can create a very striking effect by combining two or three different groundcover plants, where each plant group flows or drifts into each other.

Although all groundcovers tend to be tough and often thrive in poor soil and under adverse conditions, not all have been doing well in my garden. Here are some that work for me. One of my favorite groundcovers for shade is the popular Vinca minor, also called periwinkle or myrtle. Once established it is an evergreen carpet of glossy green leaves about 4-6 inches high. In early spring, it becomes a sea of lovely blue flowers. Vinca minor also comes in variegated forms, some with white- or cream-edged leaves and with flowers in white (Alba), deep purple (Atropupurea), and light blue (Aureola). Vinca grows so well in Connecticut that it is considered to be a potentially invasive plant. So don’t plant it near your precious perennials, instead, underplant it with spring bulbs. Another one of my favorite groundcovers for shade are violets. Some varieties are even evergreen. Violets are very hardy, but slugs and Japanese beetles may chew holes in leaves during some years. Violets do best in good soil amended with organic matter. Lamium like “White Nancy” with its green-edged silver-white foliage is great at lightening up the shade. Variegated Bishop’s weed (Aegopodium) has pale green leaves edged in white and spreads vigorously in shade or sun to make a dense groundcover. It thrives in a bare landscape, but may become invasive.

I also like to use groundcover sedums (Stonecrops) for shady or part shade areas. This may be surprising to some, because when you buy a plant, the tag will most likely say: “sun, for rocky areas”. Most sedums will do well in part shade, but I get excellent results in areas with more shade than sun. Sedums are fleshy plants that prefer well-drained soil and need only low levels of nutrients. Therefore they thrive even in poor soil. One of my favorite sedums to plant bordering pathways, along the driveway and around shrubs is goldmoss or golden stonecrop sedum (Sedum acre). It has tiny green leaves and is only 2-5 inches tall. It is covered with masses of tiny yellow star-like flowers in late spring and early summer. It looks great in between other low-growing sedums. One of my new favorites is sedum Angelina or Angelina Stonecrop. It is a golden groundcover from Croatia. It has needle-like foliage and the new shoots vary in color from green to gold and sometimes the tips turn ginger.

For sun, creeping phlox or moss phlox (Phlox subulata) is an easy to grow dense evergreen groundcover that is unsurpassed for bright blooms in spring. It is ideal for borders and slopes and can be planted over spring bulbs. Once established, creeping phlox benefits from being sheared back (up to half its growth) after flowering. Another groundcover that loves sun is thyme. It looks great planted next to and in between flagstones or pavers or when planted as a lawn substitute. I like to grow thyme under shrubs on sunny slopes and under trees with small or loose canopies. White creeping thyme (Thymus serpyllium “Albus”) makes a beautiful carpet underneath my white birch trees. The Irish moss that I also planted there is less happy. Creeping thymes such as Pink Chintz, Reiter, and Ohme Garden Carpet all have pink flowers and are vigorous growers. They are 1-3 inches high and one plant can spread more than 2 feet.

So if you want to simplify your garden, work less and enjoy more, plant more hardy weed-suppressing groundcovers. Just remember to avoid large seas of monotonous and boring groundcover. Don’t plant large areas with one plant only, create drifts of complementing plants with similar growth requirements.