shady yard - erosion control - what to do?

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tikijenn Thomaston, GA(Zone 7b) Mar 10, 2009

We have a shop in our back yard with an oak tree near it that shades the area there quite well. This is where we do all of our grilling. It's a nice shady area in the yard, but obviously grass will not grow since we are always driving over this area with the lawn mower, etc. and the shade won't allow certain types of grass to grow. So... our dilemna is that when it rains we have a lot of that lovely Georgia red mud washing down the hill into the driveway. What should we do about erosion control since grass won't grow there?

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ecrane3 Dublin, CA(Zone 9a) Mar 10, 2009

Have you tried mulching? That may fix the problem for you and it'll be easier than trying to get a groundcover to grow in a high traffic area.

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tikijenn Thomaston, GA(Zone 7b) Mar 10, 2009

We haven't even thought of that. We could do that with the leaves that fall out of the oak tree every fall couldn't we?

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ecrane3 Dublin, CA(Zone 9a) Mar 10, 2009

Or with bark mulch...you might need something heavier than leaves to keep it from washing away in the rain. Depending on how steep of a slope it is the mulch may not be enough but it's worth trying.

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tikijenn Thomaston, GA(Zone 7b) Mar 10, 2009

That's true. We could try that and see what happens. Any other ideas if it doesn't work?

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ecrane3 Dublin, CA(Zone 9a) Mar 10, 2009

You can always do rocks/gravel. Or look into shade-tolerant groundcovers...they won't necessarily stand up well to the lawnmower being dragged over it all the time or people walking on it on their way to and from the BBQ which is why I suggested mulch instead. But if you're willing to keep people and mowers off of it until it's established, try searching this site http://www.stepables.com/ for some ideas.

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JuneyBug Dover AFB, DE(Zone 7a) Mar 11, 2009

That is a great site ecrane3! There is a spot here to find out the perfect plant for your situation: http://www.stepables.com/store/scripts/prodSearch-plants.asp

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tikijenn Thomaston, GA(Zone 7b) Mar 18, 2009

Oh thanks y'all. I actually bought some stepables last year for a tiny spot next to our front steps where there is really no hope for flowers because of the foot traffic and they have worked out perfectly. I don't know why I didn't think of them! I went to the search page and found Luptinella Gruveri Miniature Brass Buttons. The only bad thing is that they are not drought tolerant but I guess they could be watered right. Now I just need to see if I can get some!

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