euonymus: invasive or friend of slopes in zone 5?

My property sits on a rise well above the street and sidewalk. I need some ground cover that can spread on this slope, because it is difficult to mow. I have approximately 60 ft of frontage to fill in. Is euonymous "emerald gaiety" a good choice. (I can take some cuttings from my mother's plants) The area faces east and has no shade at anytime during the day, except when the sun is setting behind the house. I am looking for something that spreads. I have next to no budget and need something I can start from seed this winter or can get from family. Any ideas or suggestions?

http://www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/plantfinder/Plant.asp?code=A520

How about vinca or some kind of mint? I hesitate to mention these two dreaded groundcovers since they can be so hard to get rid of. But if your slope is contained both sure are inexpensive and will definitely spread. You could find a low growing type. Also from below Snow on the Mountain may be pretty could you grow it there?
Euphorbia marginata - again this is invasive. So be sure you really want it there. Very beautiful tho.

Missingrosie,
We have vinca in the very front near the street. I hate that stuff. Ever since we bought the house two years ago we have been fighting it. I am looking for something that will spread and be at the very least not ugly through out the year. I was also thinking maybe some creeping thyme with some clumps of ornamental grass such as blue fescue.

I am just trying to be imaginative and have a unique slope that does not require mowing! I am trying to keep potnetial plants under one foot tall. Any other helpful hints?

Creeping thyme works well and it has a pretty flower. Maybe you could start it from seed.

I assume by euonymous that is a ground cover, you mean Euonymous fortunei, aka climbing euonymous or wintercreeper. If so, that is an exotic invasive, and on Indiana's "Most Unwanted Invasive Plant Pests" list. Vinca minor is also on the list. Both are mostly a concern when they can spread vegetatively out of your property, and especially if you are near a park or wild area. Even if that isn't an issue, you should be careful with being able to keep any of the exotic invasives (some natives too) out of the rest of your yard. Here are some native alternative ground covers for sunny areas: Carolina anemone, wild strawberry (fruit can vary from tasteless to exquisite- may not pass your budget test, as I've only every seen this sold as plants but if you know someone who has some, I'm sure they'll be able to spare some plants), several species of native sedums, bird's foot or prairie violets. You could also try a low growing native prairie planting that combines some of these with some shorter grasses and other wildflowers. Better than any single ground cover, you'll be able to have something that will fill in but give you season long interest in that something will always be blooming. You'll also attract more birds & butterflies that almost any monoculture ground cover. You can do one part with one plant, another part with another, etc. if you think about how they look together, or just use a mix.

A native grass that is clump forming and along the lines of cabrlamo's blue fescue suggestion is prairie dropseed.

dkm65,
Thanks for the head's up on the Indiana invasive plant list. I know that a previous ground cover that seemed interesting (crown vetch) was on the list. As a new landscaper/gardener I am always thankful for a push in the right direction. Thanks for the suggestions of prairie dropseed and carolina anemone. I was doing some more searching and found something called Veronica "Georgia Blue". Any other specific suggestions? Are there any sites that list native plants?


This message was edited Aug 2, 2007 8:54 AM

There are a number of native plant nurseries that have quite a bit of information on things like soil, sun, water preference and germination info. I don't think it's allowed to name names on the forum as that is considering advertising, although if you go to my member page you'll find a couple. There are quite a few online resources and organizations online, as well as some good books you might want to find. One good site is the Lady Bird Johnson Wildlife Center (http://www.wildflower.org), which has an online database of native plants. Missouri has a site of native plants that will have many species that it shares with you (http://www.grownative.org). A google search will turn up more. Wild Ones (http://www.for-wild.org) is a good resource, although they don't have an online database. You also check to see if they have a local chapter (there is an IN chapter, but it may not be close) near you where you will find lots of very knowledgeable people.

On books, one decent resource is recommendation is Sally Wasowski's book, Gardening with Native Plants. The Wild-Ones book store has a list of other books (most of which they don't sell directly). I've seen a series on native gardening for several states (MN, WI, MI), that might be helpful even if there isn't an IN specific volume.