A colourful carpet of ground cover plants may be a creative, low maintenance alternative to a lawn. Alternatively a pattern of coloured stone or chippings with feature plants in containers may be your preference.

Collection of Low Growing Plants

• A mix of flowers and shrubs can include conifers like Golden Juniper Juniperus x media ‘Golden Sovereign’, Juniperus horizontalis, Juniper squamata ‘Holger’ and Picea pungens ‘Glauca Prostrata’ all around one foot tall with varying spreads.
• For colour in summer you can’t beat some Petunia multiflora and vibrant Busy Lizzie Impatiens. Try the ‘accent’ series from Thompson Morgan
• Bulbs of Dutch Iris, Cyclamen, Crocus and Muscari can provide spring and autumn colour.
• Fillers and good doers include Bugle Ajuga reptans, Pinks Dianthus Indian hybrids, Geranium, Sedum and Vinca.

Design Features

• Wide flat rocks can break up the verdant space and give the gardener a place to stand and weed.
• Think in terms of 8-12″ as the average height with accent plants if required.
• Create a backing or edging with taller uniform plants. Roses box or taller Conifers may suit.
• Plant in bold blocks of colour with annuals close together for maximum effect.

Patterns of Gravel

• Ground cover of pebbles, chippings or gravel can add colour. I like plum coloured slate chippings.
• The covering can be used to stand elegant containers perhaps containing trailing plants like lobelia or geraniums.
• Make sure you have a weed barrier under the gravel.
• Gravel should be comparatively low maintenance but keep it spruce and moss free.

Similar rule apply when planting ground cover that grows taller. Select a height 18-24″ in this case and plant appropriate plants in the designated area. Tree ferns have been used as accent plants in this design.

Ground cover plants ‘beat weeds’ and many of the plants recommended below will flower year after year. Plant healthy young plants from pots or modules about 12 inches apart and the fast growing ground cover will produce a dense carpet of colour for many years.

Ground Cover Selection

Helianthemum grows strongly in my garden with bright orange flowers. Reds and whites are available.

Pachysandra terminalis is grown for the foliage but it has flowers that are small and white

Campanula carpatica is a low growing plant with bell shaped flowers in blue. Try the Alba variety for white flowers.

SedumKamschaticum is dense low growing and flowers orange or yellow. Sedum spureum has larger flowers in burgundy red.

Thymus is an old favourite that I have found takes time to get established but the scent and pink flowers may be worth waiting for.

Dianthus deltoides make pink cushions of flower and do well in chalky soil as does Gypsophylla prostrata.

Cottage Garden Selection

London Pride is a staple ground covering plant in many old cottage gardens and can be used to soften edges of paths.

Saxifrage and Phlox subulata may also feature in the Cottage garden effect.