A Top-Notch Guide to Ground Cover Plants
Bask Your Garden in Greenery: Sun-Loving, Low-Fuss Plants That Dazzle in the Sunlight
Illuminating the Perfect Fit for Your Landscaping Needs
If you're longing for a beautiful, sustainable, and low-maintenance yard, ground cover plants are your best ally!These charming flora magically fill empty spots, excel in hard-to-reach areas, and can even serve as a grass alternative. Lush, flowering ground covers will surely catch sight during your stroll, while evergreen ground covers will enliven your winter scenery.
Crafting Your Yard: Covering Ground
A Little Understanding
Before plunging into the local nursery to hunt down ground covers, research your area's USDA hardiness zones to pick the best plants for your region. An abundance of sunshine, optimal soil composition, and perfect climate can create the perfect garden habitat.
12 Star Performers amongst the Ground-Covering Crew
1. Creeping Thyme (Thymus serpyllum)
Brimming with charm, this three-inch ground cover species will steal your hearts with its delicate pink blossoms and aromatic foliage. Thriving best in USDA hardiness zones 4-8, this tiny beau prefers full sun, low-fertility soil, and well-draining grounds. Ideal for lawn replacements, border fill-ins, or stepping stone accents!
2. Perennial Cornflower (Centaurea montana)
Nothing screams life like red clumps of dazzling perennial cornflower! Standing tall at two feet high, it conquers spaces with its showy flower clusters. This ground cover is uncomplicated to grow, flourishing in poor to average soil and dry to medium water conditions in zones 3-8.
3. Lamb's Ear (Stachys byzantina)
Like the softest fleece, lamb's ear's silver-green, elliptical leaves will elicit a feeling of comfort under your fingertips. Forming low, dense clumps and spreading by rooting at stem nodes in zones 4-9, this herbaceous perennial prefers dry to medium soils with excellent drainage and full to part sun conditions. The elegant, pinkish-purple flowers are optional, as many gardeners prefer the captivating foliage without blossoms.
4. Basket-of-gold (Aurinia saxatilis)
Boasting vibrant yellow flowers in tight panicles, Basket-of-gold forms a low (up to a foot) mound of attractive, narrow, gray-green leaves. Spreading by self-sowing, it thrives closest to your sunny rock gardens and xeriscapes. Ideal placement is in zones 3-7 with full sun exposure and well-drained sandy soil.
5. Creeping Phlox (Phlox subulata)
Moss phlox, or Creeping Phlox, is a charming herbaceous perennial that beautifully adopts a spreading habit. Growing just six inches tall, it explodes in loose clusters of pink to blue flowers in spring, continuing to bloom until frost. Moss phlox is a versatile delight, loving to sun-bathe all day, and capable of growing in zones 3-9. In special cases, it may indeed survive in zone 2 or 10 conditions with the appropriate microclimates.
6. Blue Catmint (Nepeta x faassenii)
Tall and clump-forming, blue catmint rules the yard with its lavender-blue flowers and gray green leaves. Growing about 18 to 24 inches high and spreading three feet wide, this drought-tolerant perennial will easily catch the eye in full to part shade and well-drained soil. Bee-friendly, it is hardy in USDA zones 5-9.
7. Stonecrop (Sedum rupestre)
Hardy, succulent stonecrop, or sedum, will grace your landscaping with gray-green to reddish-yellow leaves and small yellow flowers in summer. It forms a carpet of evergreen foliage, growing four to six inches high but spreading up to two feet wide. Ideal for zones 5-8, stonecrop thrives in well-drained soil with full sun exposure. It tolerates light shade, drought, and rocky soil.
8. Wall Germander (Teucrium chamaedrys)
This shrubby herb undergoes a transformation: in spring, it boasts bright pink flowers, while its leaves display a minty fragrance. Rapidly growing by rooting rhizomes, wall germander easily becomes invasive, so maintain your boundaries. Surviving in zones 5-9, it prefers full sun and dry soil rich in limestone.
9. Rockspray Cotoneaster (Cotoneaster horizontalis)
Strength in spread is this low-growing shrub's superpower! With a maximum height of three feet but a maximum spread of eight feet, it leaves you with no empty corners. White to pink flowers adorn your garden in spring, followed by red berries that attract birds. Suitable for zones 5-7, it prefers moist, well-drained soil and full sun conditions.
10. Hardy Ice Plant (Delosperma cooperi)
Beaming with purple-pink flowers, hardy ice plant carpets the ground in summer through fall. With fleshy leaves, it grows just six inches tall in zones 6-10. Ideal placement is in full sun with drought-tolerant, dry, sandy soil.
11. Creeping Juniper (Juniperus horizontalis)
Originated from Canada and the US northern states, creeping juniper is a lovable evergreen shrub. It grows to a mere 18 inches tall and sports long, trailing branches with blue-green, scale-like foliage. The cones vaguely mimic blueberries! Suited to zones 3-9, creeping juniper tolerates most soil types but prefers sandy or rocky soil with excellent drainage and full sun exposure.
12. Candytuft (Iberis sempervirens)
Who could resist the cheerful white flower clusters of candytuft? Blossoming from spring to mid-summer, it captivates with its charming beauty. This evergreen herbaceous perennial or subshrub grows up to a foot tall with a sprawling, mounding habit, thriving in zones 3-8 in full sun and well-draining soil conditions.
Transforming Lawns to Paradise
From soft lambs' ear leaves to eye-catching basket-of-gold flowers, ground covers grace your corner of the world with their unique beauty. Plant them where they can survive and thrive, including banks to prevent erosion and lawns in need of something special. Embrace the green revolution and watch your garden unfold into a breathtaking landscape!
Contributors
- Serena Manickam - A freelance editor and writer with a BA in environmental science, Serena Manickam runs Fairydiddle Farm, a sustainable market garden in Virginia, where she sells no-spray produce and herbs at local farmer's markets. 👉 View Full Profile
Apple of Your Eye
These top ground cover picks appeal to various bodacious bees, pollinators, and beauty-loving eyes! Arm your garden arsenal with these jewel gems to create a landscape to be proud of.
| Plant Name | Zone Range | Light Preference | Soil Preference | Special Notes ||-------------------|-------------------|------------------|-------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------|| Creeping Thyme | 4-8 | Full sun | Well-draining | Fragrant, lawn alternative || Perennial Cornflower | 3-8 | Full sun | Poor to average | Dazzling, tall flower clusters || Lamb's Ear | 4-9 | Full sun | Dry to medium | Velvety leaves, beautiful foliage || Basket-of-gold | 3-7 | Full sun | Sandy soil | Rock garden gem, self-sows || Creeping Phlox | 3-9 | Full sun | Moist, humusy | Mini pink to blue flowers, lawn alternative || Blue Catmint | 5-9 | Full sun | Sandy soil | Lavender-blue flowers, bee-friendly || Stonecrop | 5-8 | Full sun | Well-draining | Evergreen leaves, reddish colorations in autumn || Wall Germander | 5-9 | Full sun | Sandy, well-draining| Minty fragrance, potential invasiveness || Rockspray Cotoneaster | 5-7 | Full sun | Moist, well-draining| Attracts birds, red berries || Hardy Ice Plant | 6-10 | Full sun | Dry, sandy soil | Drought-tolerant || Creeping Juniper | 3-9 | Full sun | Well-draining | Blue cones mimic blueberries || Candytuft | 3-8 | Full sun | Well-draining | Cheerful white flower clusters |
- A flourishing garden can be achieved by selecting the best ground cover plants for your USDA hardiness zone.
- Creeping Thyme, with its charming pink blossoms and aromatic foliage, is an excellent choice for zones 4-8 and prefers full sun, low-fertility soil, and well-draining grounds.
- Perennial Cornflower, with its striking red flowers, thrives in poor to average soil and dry to medium water conditions in zones 3-8.
- Lamb's Ear, with its soft and silver-green leaves, is ideal for dry to medium soils with full to part sun conditions in zones 4-9.
- Candytuft, with its cheerful white flower clusters, is hardy in zones 3-8 and prefers full sun and well-draining soil conditions.
- Ground covers, such as Creeping Thyme and Lamb's Ear, can fill empty spaces, flourish in hard-to-reach areas, and serve as an alternative to grass.
- When embarking on a landscaping project, it is essential to research the best ground cover plants for your region and climate for a beautiful and sustainable yard.
- Serena Manickam, a freelance editor and writer with a background in environmental science, recommends ground covers like Creeping Thyme and Candytuft for creating a breathtaking landscape.
- Properly maintained ground covers can help prevent erosion in banks and add a unique touch to lawns in need of something special.
- By understanding your garden's soil, sun, and climate needs, you can successfully grow attractive, low-maintenance ground covers that attract pollinators and create a beautiful outdoor living space.
