Our new church sits on a hill, has a huge steep bank out front that goes around the church and cemetary. It is imposisble to mow and the man that mows is not able to weed it down to where it looks nice all the time.
I would like to plant one of several ground covers to fil up this bank. Someone in the past has panted what I thought may be vinca it is green/white var leaves with small purple flowers. It is not spreading quickly enough.
I wanted to redo the whole back and plant something in with the what is there. If we mow down the green/white var leaves will it reroot where it lands. If so we may want to start with that.
Any suggestions, me and the youth at our church want to make this bank look nicer. Our project this summer is to beautify the outside of Gods house.
Thanks.
Sharon Nell Boyken
Need invasive Ground Cover for Large Bank
What is the soil and sun situation? I have a steep slope, and I am trying to get strawberries growing there. It is not super invasive, but it will spread if the soil is decent, and it gets good sun. Plus you get the benefit of a little snack if you get there before the rabbits.
How about a 'nice' (?) native plant that spreads readily and won't displace native plants if it escapes cultivation?
Campsis radicans (trumpet vine)
Parthenocissus quinquefolia (virgina creeper)
Rhus aromatica 'Grow Low' (fragrant sumac--low growing, lovely red berries for the birds, slower, not so aggressive as either of the vines, but spreads very nicely--'Grow Low' is the shortest, but others are just as nice)
Cornus sericea (red-stem dogwood--also slower to establish and not as aggressive as the two vines, but beautiful!)
and don't forget our lovely native grasses. . .
Panicum virgatum (lower grasses)
Sorhastrum nutans (taller)
native Carex species
The Virginia creeper is probably the fastest growing and a lovely red color in the autumn. Trumpet vine is equally fast growing--attractive to butterflies and hummingbirds, too. You can get trumpet vine cultivars in several shades, including peach, red and orange.
They are both native vines but both also meet your need for an 'invasive' plant!
(I have a slope which currently has some awful non-native invasives and and native Poison Ivy--eventually it will be replaced with Cornus sericea and Rhus aromatica, but first I have to get rid of the other stuff.)
Good luck!
Teresa
This message was edited May 11, 2008 6:38 PM
Hi. I have plenty of Bishops Weed.
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/55676/
Check the link above out and let me know if your interested!
Jen
Wow, Jen_D, that is some powerful stuff! I am sure that I don't want any, but I am really glad to know about it.
Ahh, powerful it is! I doubt I'll ever be rid of it. Thank goodness though, it is NOT in my flower beds! It actually is quite lovely when its in bloom.
Thanks for the offer Jen, I hink I will pass after reading how invasive it is. Thanks again.
snboyken.
Is the slope in the sun or shade?
Wild violets will do for either as a ground cover as long as the area is not too dry.
You can also grow native plants through the violets. If you google the Kentucky Native Plant Society there are a lot of options.
Do not do Bishop's Weed, as everyone else has said. It is more invasive that anything in my wildest dreams, and it is very hard to pull out.
also check t osee that you have an evergreen cover- I assume you are not wanting something that will die back in winter and leave a bare, erodable slope. I have lamiastrum, very invasive but very ratty looking in winter, well so is that variegated vinca to some extent.
Not to say I disagree at all with using natives if they are affordable for the situation.
Creeping liriope will fill, and will stay green through most of the winter. It'll get dry and ratty in late spring before new leaevs come up--- around the time forsythis blooms you can mow to trim the old leaves. If some church members already have any creeping liriope, it would be cheap to go dig up from them. split it up, and make your own plantings.