Groundcovers

Hi all,

I am not sure this is the best forum to ask this question and I searched to see if this has been discussed and I did not find anything. Please forgive me if I'm wrong on either point.

I have slowly come to be less and less of a mulch fan. Sure it has great benefits - the aesthetic include that nice finished, professional look with no weeds. The nitty gritty benefits include weed suppression, temperature moderation, organic breakdown (assuming organic mulch) and moisture conservation, as most of you already know. However, you don't hear the mulch boosters talking about the negatives. They include expense and /or lots of work - I have large beds that are not yet 'crowded' enough to keep out lots of weeds. It usually has to be replenished every year or two. The basic hardwood mulch I have dumped in large quantities gets very compressed and needs fluffing. It can float away in heavy rains. Also, when using organic mulch, weed seeds land and easily take root.

I have therefore come to the conclusion that effective groundcovers are more appealing to me. I am in the middle of experimenting with a number of them and want to hear from all of you. First - what are your thoughts on groundcovers versus mulch. Next, and more importantly, which groundcovers have worked for you? Many plants that are described or marketed as groundcovers really are not - they do not grow quickly and tightly enough to choke out weeds. Some of the ones I have been trying include vinca (weeds grow through it but not too bad - works from full sun to full shade), creeping jenny (also from full sun to full shade but I have quite a few weeds growing though them in one area, though curiously, not in another), hardy geranium (good for partial shade - so far, so good - I believe the added height is helpful and there are added benefits such as blooms, fragrance and fall color), juniper, ranunculus 'Buttered Popcorn' (full sun to full shade - was high on this last year but large areas did not return after this past winter - it is very attractive though), and euphorbia robbiae ( full shade to partial - too sparse and slow growing).
Please let me know your thoughts. Thank you.

Victor

I've never used ivy,but I think it's very pretty.I like the kind with small leaves.Jody

I have used Vinca Minor 'Periwinkle', Lamium, but my all time favorite is Creeping Jenny mixed with bronze Ajuga.

Thanks. The big question is - are they effective weed blockers?

Victor

Victor,
I'd like to know myself.Interesting subjust you started.
Jody

Victor, I assume you have been using pine bark mulch because it flaots away, which has nothing to do with your question unfortunately.

I can't help you there as all my ground covers over the years have all gotten weeds. The thick (and invasive) ivy ground cover even got poison ivy in it.

Comfrey is another one I'm trying. Planted one plant last year and now it's a sizable thick patch. Of course another consideration is whether you will need to walk on it. Not many can take much foot traffic. Certain mosses can but they take forever to spread. Lots to consider.

Victor

Vinca worked pretty well against most broad leaf weeds, but poorly on grasses. Same was/is true of the Lamium.
The Creeping Jenny grows in VERY dense and blocks out everything, however it is frost sensative and will die back.
It is a hardy perennial so bounces back in Spring.
Here's a pic of one of my patches of CJ and Bronze Ajuga mixed

How about this?
Genus: Trifolium
Species: repens 'Atropurpureum'
Variety: Dark Dancer
Common Name: Clover

http://www.provenwinners.com/plants/detail.cfm?photoID=6228

Beautiful plant, Darius. Has anyone tried it? The question is will it smother weeds. I have lots of clover in my garden but it's usually mixed with other stuff so I'm not sure it will dominate like you want a groundcover to. I would like to try it though - it's gorgeous.

Victor

I just saw it not long before I posted here. The site says it's "agressive".

It says Zone 4. Is that the only zone? It is drop-dead gorgeous in that photo.

No, I think that's the coldest zone. I first saw it in a photo of a garden in a warmer zone.

It grows great in my 8b zone......easy to controll (for me) I just pull up what I don;t want. The dark color looks great against certain greens and yellows. ;-)

How effectively does it keep out weeds, Riker? How quickly does it grow - how much will it spread in one season, for example?

I don't have enough of it growing to be used against weeds, but I would think it would do 'okay' against larger broad leaf weeds, but doubt it would be very useful against grasses.
Mine doesn't grow real fast, so havent had much to do with it as far as keeping it in check.....had to pull it back a tad from the patio steps but that was all.

I have an herb that is low growing and nothing comes up in it.I'll take a photo and look for the tag.Jody

Bishops weed is great but it can be invasive in certain areas. I've had great success with different thymes - especiallt lemon thyme. Another good ground cover is the smaller speedwell. The more groundcovers I plant the less mulch I need!

A truly effective groundcover has to be invasive. You can't spread quickly and smother out everyone else (exactly what you're hoping for from your groundcover if you want tit to replace mulch) without being invasive!

Victor

I have had very good luck with hardy geraniums, and, if you don't mind some height, Solomon's Seal. When I planted it, I wasn't really looking for it to be so "effective"! Mayapple is another that comes to mind, Johnny-jump-ups (viola tricolor), although grass and dandelions will happliy cohabitate. low growing dianthus, mother of thyme (sorry, don't have the proper name for any of the thymes), lemon thyme, creeping thyme,. LOL, if you're really willing to go wild, Golderod (Solidago) will cover ground and drown out EVERYTHING!

We are fortunate to have a sawmill owned by the son of an old neighbor that has a bark chipper. He dyes the bark, which I'd be happier without, but the brown or black isn't too bad. We have some land up near his place and he likes to hunt it, so we get a good deal on big loads of mulch. It is very handy to have for the open areas in the rock beds and around the roses.

lamb's ear

Lamb's ear is nice for sunny areas. I have 'Helene Von Stein' and like it a lot. There is a bit of maintenance with it in the Spring - it needs to be 'cleaned up'. In a large area that can be a lot of work.

The groundcover I use most is Sweet Woodruff (asperula odorata). It tolerates our weather, fills in all my shady open spots fairly quicky, chokes out the garlic mustard that I fight everywhere else, stays full when I forget to water, and is cute as heck with the little white blooms in the spring. It has even done very well under a black walnut.

Second choice is Ajuga torch. I like the lamb's ear, too, but the clean up is what prevents me from using it more.

Stacy

Heck, I had forgotten all anout sweet woodruff! I had it as a ground cover in my old shade garden and it was wonderful.

Victor, here's a link: http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/55/index.html

Thanks. I have sweet woodruff too! I like it but it spreads pretty slowly. In my patch, which is getting sizeable, I do have to deal with some clover growing through it. By the way, has anyone dried it for its scent? How should that be done? When should it be picked?

Back to ground covers, I forgot to mention two others I am experimenting with. One is hellebore - for shade to part shade. It spreads slowly and is a bit pricey but it's evergreen, has great blooms very early and eventually forms nice thick clumps that will shade out most weeds. Again, as I stated with geraniums,I believe the added height helps. It's like holding a big umbrella up so dense shade is cast on the ground.

The second one, also for shade, is petasites. This really spreads fast and gets big. I have the variegated giant one. I will take a photo and show it. This one can move however. This is my third season with it and three plants have turned into a thick patch about 15 feet wide by five or so feet deep. It is attempting to jump out of the bed and into my lawn. I worry I will see it at my doorstep one day!

One of the concerns with my 'quest' is this - if I find the 'ultimate' groundcover that will smother out all weeds, will it also affect the perennials and bulbs in the bed? Has anyone had that problem? I have heard that loosestrife can choke out your prized perennials. No one said this was easy and strightforward! Thanks again.

Victor

I haven't had a problem with the sweet woodfruff spreading slowly, but I use a lot of organic goodies, so I get a pretty good first year growth on plants. When we moved I brought one bucket of it with me, and three years later it's going gangbusters. Another one I have a lot of is lamium. It's so overgrown on the west side of the house that it's covering the walkway around the house - which reminds me, I need to add it to my honey-do list.

Hi, want to stick my nose in here.....no one likes pachysandra? My favorite when I lived up in Rochester, NY....Fills in quickly, green all winter...can make started in potting pan outside in winter. (don't need to bring in for more starts)....I comes regular and varigated...Liked the varigated myself.

Thanks for listening...

Hap

It is an effective ground cover for shade - I just never liked it. Variegated is nicer though. I believe my galium is probably spreading slower because it is in dry shade - in kind of powdery soil. Thanks.

Victor

Well, as I said I came from Rochester................that's all they have............no wonder it did so well no matter where I put it....LOLOLOL

I have some spots with pachysandra, too. Agree with Victor - effective, but I've never liked it all that much. Beside, the bed with the pachysandra is where the dog poops, so maybe that's why I have a negative reaction to it :)

To me that would be good.....better in the pachy than on the orientals......

No kidding, Happy. The nice part is that I don't dig over there, and by the time I get to it it's pretty much disintegrated on it's own. KD has her own personal pachy-potty. Life is good :)

True, life IS good......

Hap

I'm using hardy plumbago (Plumbaginoides ceratostigma) under a tree, and in its third year it has filled in quite nicely. It took some TLC to keep it weeded up till now, but I think (hope) it'll take over from here.

I also like Ajuga, Lamium and a southeastern native Pachysandra. I didn't care for the Creeping Jenny (too invasive - yeah, yeah, I agree: if you want a groundcover, it's gonna be invasive to be effective, but it just wasn't a plant I'd care to use over large areas.)

Creeping Thyme has been very effective for me; only a few thin strands of Bermudagrass dare to send a spindly shoot up through it. And that's saying a lot. (I didn't pit them in direct competion, but the bed had some remaining piece sof Bermudagrass I've been working to eliminate, and the Thyme has been very effective in aiding me in that endeavour ;o) It also smells nice when I have to pull up a few clumps that have meandered where they shouldn't.

Liriope is often used around here as a ground cover. And yes it tends to smother out just about everything in its path, and looks pretty good to boot.

Most effective groundcover around here? Creeping Charlie. It's also my #2 arch enemy, second only to Bermudagrass as the object of intense scorn and loathing from me. I'd give up a lot of earthly possessions to be rid of one or both once and for all. But hey - the Creeping Charlie does an admirable job of smothering and choking out everything in its path.

Hmmm, did anyone mention Dragon's Blood Sedum? It's done wonders for me - I didn't mulch at all in the areas where I planted it and its really taken over - no weeds to speak of other than the odd blade of grass. I like it because its pretty much evergreen here - just turns red and "shrinks" a little in winter (dessicates a bit) -BUT- it does let my little spring bulbs through to bloom, then the sedum just goes nuts, greens up, plumps up, and has a party!

I have it growing "with" Irish moss - they coexist nicely. The moss is great too, but it takes A Lot of water here so it wouldn't be practical for me to have it all over.

In regards to mulch - what has been working for me is to use organic mulch around everything including the groundcovers - then as they start growing they'll fill in as the mulch decomposes.

Sometimes I've just got to be lazy and I like the easy-cheesy-1-2-3see methods! -C

Down here I have been using............don't get upset....................wandering jew.....I love the silver and purple because I have a lot of pinks. And, boy, does it keep out the weeds...If I want to put a plant, coleus of course, in....I just move a bunch to the side and slide it right it....The WJ goes right back and you would think that the plant was there forever. And, if I get tired of it or want to replace it, it has not dug it's dirty little roots down to China so it's easily removed....Win, win......and that's a good thing in my book.

Then in another small area where I could get nothing to grow, I use another baddy..golden pothos. I know, I know and I corrupting the neighbor hood. But if it grows,.....it's good. I keep a whip handy for that. But again, it's easily maintained and removed.

Hap

Just found this in my new issue of Horticulture. The Cornell Allstar Groundcover Web site.

www.entomology.cornell.edu/Extension/Woodys/CUGroundCoverSite/GroundcoverMain.html

The give weed suppression ratings, cultural info etc.

Very useful - thanks!

Here's my ground covers:

front left - creeping pink phlox
front right - creeping blue juniper (i think)

both had very nill weeds in them, especially the creeping pink phlox which acted like a thick thick hanging carpet. Thanks.