Ground covers are time, work, and soil savers--and maybe even lifesavers. Their evergreen or deciduous varieties include shrubs, vines, ferns, and flowers. They can be ground hugging or tall, colorful or drab, annual or perennial. They vary to suit all climates, locations, and soil conditions and can be invasive or well mannered.
Once established, ground covers are care free, and they help prevent erosion. Thickly planted on a slope or a bank, they form a matted root system, binding and holding the soil together on even the steepest slopes. Where uncovered banks might wash away, those with established ground covers will will remain in place through the most torrential cloudbursts and subsequent flooding. A circle of ground cover around the base of trees and shrubs is a protective measure against power-mower damage. And if you happen to have an acutely sloping lawn, ground covers may even save your life. Covering a bank with a ground cover instead of grass eliminates the need to mow such hazardous areas.
Properly established, ground covers can last forever. They don't need mowing or weeding and they rarely need pruning. A sprinkle of fertilizer each spring ensures vigorous growth, but is not essential. An occasional watering during dry spells is suggested, yet a well-established bed will survive droughts with a minimum of water.
Getting started
Select an environment for your new ground cover plants that is conducive to rapid and sustained growth. To get them off to a good start, they need a rich, easy-draining bed with lots of humus.
Although spring and fall are the best times to start a ground cover bed, the seedlings can be planted throughout the summer as long as roots of newly set-out seedlings are kept moist until they've become firmly anchored. If the site of the prospective bed is covered with sod or weeds, strip away this vegetation and compost it. Test the soil. If lime is needed, apply the required amount. Exception: Omit lime for ground covers that prefer an acid soil--heaths, heathers, ferns, epimediums, and the like. Depending on the quality of the topsoil, spread three to six inches of organic matter like peat moss, rotted manure, compost, or leaf mold over the bed and mix it with the top six inches of soil. If in doubt, use more, rather than less humus; the richer the soil, the healthier the bed. Rake the area, smooth, and water.
Wait two weeks before planting to give weed seeds time to germinate. Dust the soil with an all-purpose fertilizer--about two pounds for each 100 square feet. Rake the bed vigorously to get rid of newly sprouted weeds--raking also works fertilizer into the soil. If weeds are minimal you can now plant, but if many weeds come up, wait another two weeks to allow for more to sprout. Again, remove these by raking. The more weeds eliminated in this preplanting stage, the fewer there will be to get rid of later.
Spacing
The objective of most ground covers is to minimize maintenance by getting plants to grow so closely together that weeds cannot penetrate the thick mass of roots and foliage. A thick cover can quickly be grown if the plants are initially spaced three inches apart. For most
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