Going the Distance with Ground Covers

In a tight spot and don’t know what to plant?  Try a ground cover!  Ground covers are a great way to fill in bare spots and add a unique touch to your landscape, while suppressing weeds.  “Ground covers” (or “Groundcovers”) are perennial ornamental plants that may be deciduous, evergreen, herbaceous, or woody.  Typically low-growing and planted en masse, ground covers often display attractive foliage and/or flowers. 

Photo: Ground cover Epimedium pinnatum subsp. colchicum used effectively; Cornell University, Ithaca

There are many reasons to plant ground covers.  Like any good ornamental plant, ground covers add beauty, novelty, and continuity to landscape designs.  Ground covers are also perfect for the sustainable garden.  By replacing turf grass with ground covers, you can reduce mowing, overall inputs, and excess maintenance, especially in areas where turf is difficult to maintain because it is too shady, too wet, or too sloped.  One of the main benefits of planting ground covers is that they can suppress weeds, reducing the need for herbicides or manual weeding.  Weed-suppressive ground covers grow fast and overwhelm competing vegetation.  Furthermore, ground covers can reduce soil erosion, foot traffic, and soil compaction. 

Planting recommendations for ground covers are not all that different from other ornamental plants.  First, be sure to prepare the planting bed properly by adding organic matter and adjusting for soil pH if needed according to soil test results.  After removing any offending weeds, plant the ground covers.  How far apart they should be planted is determined by their mature size.  For example, if a ground cover typically matures to 12-24 inches wide, you can space plants 12 inches apart from their centers.  After planting, add 2-3 inches of composted mulch (not fresh wood chips) to help maintain soil moisture.  Water the ground covers in and keep the soil moist until they are established.  You should plan on hand weeding around the ground covers during the first season.      

There are many unique ground covers to choose from, so don’t limit yourself to the old stand-bys like Pachysandra or English Ivy.  The Long Island Gold Medal Plant Program has awarded Gold Medal status to at least ten different and underutilized ground covers that perform admirably on Long Island.  One of these is ‘Fröhnleiten’ Barrenwort (Epimedium x perralchicum ‘Fröhnleiten’).  This herbaceous, evergreen ground cover also goes by the more appealing name Bishop’s Hat, which references the little yellow flowers which appear above the foliage in April.  This particular Barrenwort or Bishop’s Hat is a hybrid of two Epimedium species from the Middle East and North Africa but is hardy to zone 5 in the U.S.  ‘Fröhnleiten’ has attractive, glossy foliage that displays a reddish tinge around the edges of the new leaves and in winter.  It has a medium growth rate and will mature to a spread of 12-18 inches and a height of only 4-8 inches.  ‘Fröhnleiten’ Barrenwort grows best in light shade with even moisture, but it will also tolerate dense, heavy shade and dry soil where little else can grow.  ‘Fröhnleiten’ Barrenwort is perfect for shade or woodland gardens and planting beneath trees with dense canopies.  To make way for new foliage, cut the old foliage to the ground in late winter/early spring before new growth begins. 

Photo: ‘Fröhnleiten’ Barrenwort (Epimedium x perralchicum ‘Fröhnleiten’) in early spring; Atlantic Nurseries, Dix Hills

Another award-winning ground cover is Creeping Phlox (Phlox stolonifera).  Creeping Phlox is much more subdued and less showy than the ubiquitous Moss Phlox (Phlox subulata), which is also sometimes called Creeping Phlox.  P. stolonifera is an herbaceous, deciduous flowering ground cover that is native to the Eastern U.S., where it grows wild in the woodlands and along the streambanks of the Appalachians.  It prefers to grow in moist soil, rich in organic matter, in the partial shade.  It grows 12 inches wide and only 3 inches tall.  Its foliage is non-descript, but it is a stunner in the early spring when deep lavender flowers appear on stems rising 6 inches above the foliage.  Creeping Phlox is truly a head-turner with its delicate and ephemeral beauty.       

Photo: Creeping Phlox (Phlox stolonifera) in bloom; Long Island Horticultural Research & Extension Center, Riverhead

So the next time you are scratching your head wondering what to plant in an empty spot in your garden, consider a ground cover!  Both attractive and functional, ground covers are a great addition to any landscape.

Other Gold Medal Ground Covers -

Carex morrowii ‘Ice Dance’- Japanese Sedge

Ceratostigma plumbaginoides - Plumbago

Geranium x cantabrigiense ‘Biokovo’ - Hardy Geranium

Microbiota decussata - Russian Arborvitae

Sarcococca hookeriana var. humilis - Dwarf Sweetbox

Sedum spurium ‘John Creech’ - Two Row Stonecrop

Stachys ‘Helene von Stein’ - Helene von Stein Lamb’s Ears

Waldsteinia ternata - Siberian Barren-strawberry

For more info. visit:

http://ccesuffolk.org/the-long-island-gold-medal-plant-program/