Ground Covers

First you need to carefully evaluate the area where you want to grow a ground cover. Ask yourself the following questions:

• Is it sunny or shady in the location?
• How tall do you want it to grow?
• How fast do you want it to spread?
• Do you want one that’s deciduous or evergreen?
• Do you want it to flower?

All plant material benefits from the addition of organic matter like peat moss, manure, or compost to the soil before planting.

• Space your ground cover plants according to the tag instructions.
• For larger installations, purchase your ground cover in flats of 50 or 100 plants and tear them apart gently at planting time.
• Keep new plantings moist while they are establishing themselves and spread cedar mulch between plants to maintain moisture and discourage weeds.
• If the large planting of a low ground cover looks flat, consider interspersing clumps of spring-flowering Daffodils, Ferns, or Hostas. This will give a bit of height, contrasting colour, and a variation of leaf shape and size.
• Plant several different varieties. Each mass should be separately contained with an edging so they don’t grow into each other.
• Ground covers like to spread. They need the containment of an edging like black plastic to keep them in check.

• Low spreading Junipers
• Bearberry
• Coral Beauty Cotoneaster
• Bangle Gold Broom
• Paxistima and Mountain Cranberry provide evergreen interest
• Rockspray Cotoneaster and Stephanandra have an arching form.
• Sun Rose, Creeping Phlox, Snow-in-Summer, Serbian Bellflower, Cranesbill, and low Stonecrops are all perennial flowers.
• Lamb’s Ears and Silver Brocade Artemisia have distinctive silvery-grey foliage.

• Periwinkle
• Wintercreeper
• English Ivy
• Wintergreen

• Bog Rosemary is Evergreen
• Creeping Jenny, Foamflower, and Chameleon plants are perennials.

• Evergreen choices include low spreading Junipers & Bearberry.
• Perennials include Woolly Yarrow, St. John’s Wort, Low growing Potentilla, Fleece Flower, Hens & Chicks, and low Stonecrops.

• Creeping Thyme
• Scotch and Irish Moss
• Corsican Mint
• Hens & Chicks
• Woolly Yarrow
• Pussytoes
• Ice Plant
• Creeping Mazus

• English Ivy and Hall’s Honeysuckle are evergreen vines that spread quickly.
• Virginia Creeper is fast growing but deciduous.
• Crown Vetch and Ribbon Grass are perennials, deciduous, and grow rapidly.

• Wild Ginger
• Ferns
• Foamflower
• Bugleweed
• Lily-of – the-Valley
• Sweet Woodruff
• Lamium
• Lamiastrum
• Barrenwort