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Gardening

Distinguished Plants.

(23 Posts)
icanhandthemback Wed 27-Mar-19 15:05:06

I am looking for suggestions on plants for under shrubs which will cover the ground a bit. They really need to be evergreen because in the spring when I start gardening again, I won't be able to distinguish them from weeds! I have loads of Campanula but I'd like something else as well. They also have to be long-suffering. I love gardening but find it difficult to get the balance of watering right!

aggie Wed 27-Mar-19 15:37:39

Aubretia , going mad in my borders , but very pretty against the daffodils . There is one , starts with a V , you get it in white or blue , grows everywhere . Just checked the label , Vinca minor

J52 Wed 27-Mar-19 15:42:41

Lamium, common name Yellow Archangel spreads well, is evergreen, although it has silver variegated leaves.

Fennel Wed 27-Mar-19 15:53:20

Periwinkle is good for ground cover.
Evergreen, blue flowers. It spreads well.

phoenix Wed 27-Mar-19 16:24:07

What about bugle? Purplish leaves, blue flowers, spreads like mad!

shysal Wed 27-Mar-19 16:24:35

I am a big fan of Heuchera which are evergreen and come in many colours. They are not ground cover as such but the clumps spread over the years.

Jalima1108 Wed 27-Mar-19 16:33:29

Ajuga? Spreads like mad though.

I loved my heuchera but they got vine weevil, the dark red ones have survived but none of the rest.

Jalima1108 Wed 27-Mar-19 16:34:18

Oh! I see that Ajuga is aka Bugle grin
sorry phoenix

icanhandthemback Wed 27-Mar-19 17:19:55

Lots of lovely ideas here. Thank you ladies. smile

midgey Wed 27-Mar-19 17:44:52

Aggie were you thinking of Vinca? Otherwise known as periwinkle as Fennel suggested.

NanTheWiser Wed 27-Mar-19 17:45:15

Be careful with Vinca (Periwinkle) it can be a real thug and take over. I planted the variegated form years ago, and rue the day! It spreads by underground stolons and pops up everywhere and is the devil to get rid of.

Greyduster Wed 27-Mar-19 17:55:52

Creeping phlox (phlox subulata) is very pretty and spreads rapidly. I only put one on my rockery wall last year and it has gone bonkers. Saponaria (soapwort) also forms a carpet of pink flowers.

BBbevan Wed 27-Mar-19 18:16:10

I have been looking for Wild Ginger, which I have been told makes a beautiful ground cover. If you can get hold of it , it might suit your purpose

icanhandthemback Wed 27-Mar-19 18:22:29

I've managed to kill every bit of Aubretia I've ever planted. It doesn't seem to do drought very well.

I bought a lot of Creeping Flox as plug plants. I managed to keep them going until planting but there is very little of it left.

I have masses of campanula which are blue so I am going to see if some of the suggestions which have pink flower might be work.

I have a feeling I may have been pulling up the Lamium as I thought it was a weed. I'll have to wait for it to grow again. blush

Jalima1108 Wed 27-Mar-19 20:21:30

icanhandthemback
I could grow aubretia very successfully in our first garden but never since!

icanhandthemback Wed 27-Mar-19 22:03:02

Jalima1108, I live about 100 yards away from where I used to grow Aubretia successfully but I think it might be because it wasn't quite as exposed to the elements as this one.

Jalima1108 Wed 27-Mar-19 22:54:18

The campanula grows, not in masses, but it survives.

Those blue spring bulbs (forgotten the name!!) which I thought had disappeared are flowering randomly all around the garden. Some posters dislike them but I don't mind, they add some colour.

J52 Wed 27-Mar-19 23:24:29

Jalima I think you’re referring to grape Hyacinths. I like them. Last year I managed to get some white ones which are just flowering now.

icanhandthemback Wed 27-Mar-19 23:50:23

I've had a load of Bluestar Flowers suddenly bloom in one of my garden pots. I don't remember having put them there but they do look very pretty.

annodomini Thu 28-Mar-19 00:23:26

The grape hyacinths I planted two years ago, which I thought had been eaten by mice, have suddenly made an appearance so that should be a nice little border in years to come. Delighted to see my snowflakes blooming again and they seem to have sent an offspring into another border. My very prolific hellebores are beginning to fade. Am I right in thinking that I should cut back all their foliage now - or later in the year?

Tartlet Thu 28-Mar-19 07:01:16

I always cut the old leaves off once the flowers have arrived. I did mine the other day.

lutongranny Thu 28-Mar-19 07:54:32

hardy geraniums, cranesbills make lovely clumps and ground cover, I have planted many, and beautiful flowers for the bees

Jalima1108 Thu 28-Mar-19 09:47:33

Yes, grape hyacinchs J52, thank you
Some plants seem to appear all around the garden even if not planted in specific spots - grape hyacinths, oregano etc