Ground Cover
 

I have recently cleared a hill in my yard. It's too steep for a lawn mower
so I want to plant a ground cover. Does anyone have any suggesstions for a
nice ground cover? I live in the mid-atlantic and the hill is fairly sunny.
The hill is about 20' down and 60' across. Maybe more than one ground
cover?

Thanks,
Jamie

I have a steep slope. Planted azaleas and blue rug juniper. The deer
keep eating the azaleas, but the juniper has done exceptionally well
with little care and the color is a nice contrast to the lawn. I
planted annuals (mostly marigolds) for a couple years until the
juniper spread. It is holding the hillside with no erosion issues.
We have acid soil. You can use mulch and/or stones to hold the slope
until the roots become established. The stones I used are now hidden
by the juniper.

On Sun, 13 Mar 2005 20:16:04 -0500, "Jim" wrote:

I have recently cleared a hill in my yard. It's too steep for a lawn mower
so I want to plant a ground cover. Does anyone have any suggesstions for a
nice ground cover? I live in the mid-atlantic and the hill is fairly sunny.
The hill is about 20' down and 60' across. Maybe more than one ground
cover?

Thanks,
Jamie

You can't go wrong with Sedum and Sempervivum.


"Jim" wrote in message
...
I have recently cleared a hill in my yard. It's too steep for a lawn mower
so I want to plant a ground cover. Does anyone have any suggesstions for a
nice ground cover? I live in the mid-atlantic and the hill is fairly
sunny. The hill is about 20' down and 60' across. Maybe more than one
ground cover?

Thanks,
Jamie

What was there prior to your clearing it?


--
David J. Bockman, Fairfax, VA (USDA Hardiness Zone 7)
email:
http://beyondgardening.com/Albums

"Jim" wrote in message
...
I have recently cleared a hill in my yard. It's too steep for a lawn
mower
so I want to plant a ground cover. Does anyone have any suggesstions for
a
nice ground cover? I live in the mid-atlantic and the hill is fairly
sunny.
The hill is about 20' down and 60' across. Maybe more than one ground
cover?

Thanks,
Jamie

I like Vinca...mine has pretty purplish blue flowers on it, and it seems to
spread pretty quickly.

Angie in the boonies of East Texas



"Jim" wrote in message
...
I have recently cleared a hill in my yard. It's too steep for a lawn
mower
so I want to plant a ground cover. Does anyone have any suggesstions for
a
nice ground cover? I live in the mid-atlantic and the hill is fairly
sunny.
The hill is about 20' down and 60' across. Maybe more than one ground
cover?

Thanks,
Jamie

in one word: SPEARMINT!! smells great, nice low growing, spreads like
crazy...and just think: on the 1st saturday in may, yule be able to make
mint juleps for the whole neighbourhood!!!!

From: "Jim"
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Date: Sun, 13 Mar 2005 20:16:04 -0500
Subject: Ground Cover

I have recently cleared a hill in my yard. It's too steep for a lawn mower
so I want to plant a ground cover. Does anyone have any suggesstions for a
nice ground cover? I live in the mid-atlantic and the hill is fairly sunny.
The hill is about 20' down and 60' across. Maybe more than one ground
cover?

Thanks,
Jamie

In article , "Jim" wrote:

I have recently cleared a hill in my yard. It's too steep for a lawn mower
so I want to plant a ground cover. Does anyone have any suggesstions for a
nice ground cover? I live in the mid-atlantic and the hill is fairly sunny.
The hill is about 20' down and 60' across. Maybe more than one ground
cover?

Thanks,
Jamie

For a short groundcover that almost never needs watering & loves full sun,
sunroses form lovely carpets dense enough that weeds can't get through.
Various cultivars come in every cool color except blue, & even when not
flowering they provide a varied texture because the leaves are varied from
cultivar to cultivar, from grey-blue to shiny green. For a taller
groundcover, rockroses have much the same value, but not in as wide an
array of colors. If you did create a "sea" of short sunroses, its short
height could be broken up at intervals by Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus
syriacus) that come in many colors (the blue one would add the one missing
color to the sunrose array) or an upright species rugosa rose.

-paghat the ratgirl
--
Get your Paghat the Ratgirl T-Shirt he
http://www.paghat.com/giftshop.html
"History, I believe, furnishes no example of a priest-ridden
people maintaining a free civil government." -Thomas Jefferson

In article , SKYlark
wrote:

in one word: SPEARMINT!! smells great, nice low growing, spreads like
crazy...and just think: on the 1st saturday in may, yule be able to make
mint juleps for the whole neighbourhood!!!!

Apart from the possibility of becoming invasive & the impossibility of
getting it to stay just where it was planted, it dies back in autumn &
looks like hell so makes for a poor choice of dominant groundcover. I did
see a garden in which mints & golden creeping jenny were used to good
effect as the dominant groundcovers; when they were in full
take-over-the-world mode they looked spiffy, but come winter the whole
area blackened then looked empty.

-paghat the ratgirl
--
Get your Paghat the Ratgirl T-Shirt he
http://www.paghat.com/giftshop.html
"History, I believe, furnishes no example of a priest-ridden
people maintaining a free civil government." -Thomas Jefferson

It was covered with multiflora rose...I hate that stuff. It took me two
years to get rid of it. The first year I chopped it down with a machette.
The second year, after it all died, I cut it up with a lawn mower and raked
it out. I hope I never have to do it again!


"David J Bockman" wrote in message
news:cefZd.4752$wL6.2447@trnddc03...
What was there prior to your clearing it?


--
David J. Bockman, Fairfax, VA (USDA Hardiness Zone 7)
email:
http://beyondgardening.com/Albums

"Jim" wrote in message
...
I have recently cleared a hill in my yard. It's too steep for a lawn
mower
so I want to plant a ground cover. Does anyone have any suggesstions for
a
nice ground cover? I live in the mid-atlantic and the hill is fairly
sunny.
The hill is about 20' down and 60' across. Maybe more than one ground
cover?

Thanks,
Jamie

do you think that the sunroses would work on a VERY steep hill?
like the cliff i have in my front yard facing the lake?

--
read and post,
rosie





















"paghat" wrote in message
...
: In article , "Jim"
wrote:
:
: I have recently cleared a hill in my yard. It's too steep for a
lawn mower
: so I want to plant a ground cover. Does anyone have any
suggesstions for a
: nice ground cover? I live in the mid-atlantic and the hill is
fairly sunny.
: The hill is about 20' down and 60' across. Maybe more than one
ground
: cover?
:
: Thanks,
: Jamie
:
: For a short groundcover that almost never needs watering & loves
full sun,
: sunroses form lovely carpets dense enough that weeds can't get
through.
: Various cultivars come in every cool color except blue, & even
when not
: flowering they provide a varied texture because the leaves are
varied from
: cultivar to cultivar, from grey-blue to shiny green. For a taller
: groundcover, rockroses have much the same value, but not in as
wide an
: array of colors. If you did create a "sea" of short sunroses, its
short
: height could be broken up at intervals by Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus
: syriacus) that come in many colors (the blue one would add the one
missing
: color to the sunrose array) or an upright species rugosa rose.
:
: -paghat the ratgirl
: --
: Get your Paghat the Ratgirl T-Shirt he
: http://www.paghat.com/giftshop.html
: "History, I believe, furnishes no example of a priest-ridden
: people maintaining a free civil government." -Thomas Jefferson

Hi Jamie,

I like Cereus-validus's suggestion of Sempervirens and Sedums. Also consider a creeping euonymous, but they are best used in a contained area. There are many different varieties.
http://classygroundcovers.com/cat--E...NYMUS-fortunei

Here's the main page. You can search by 'evergreen'. Do make sure they are evergreen in your hardiness zone.
http://classygroundcovers.com/

If you aren't sure of your hardiness zone you can use this zip code zone finder.
http://www.garden.org/zipzone/

I too live in the Mid-Atlantic area in Maryland. There will be a plant swap through GardenWeb.com on May 14th in Burtonsville, Maryland, between Baltimore and Washington, D.C. If you don't have anything to trade, but will bring food, you can probably go home with a trunk full of free goodies, and probably be able to find some of what you need. Just let me know if you are interested and I'll send you the details. There will also be some in other states as well.

You can check the references of mailorder sites here.
http://davesgarden.com/gwd/

Newt

In article , "rosie read n'
post" wrote:

do you think that the sunroses would work on a VERY steep hill?
like the cliff i have in my front yard facing the lake?

I've never personally seen sunroses growing on a sheer cliff, but in their
native range wild ones are known to establish themselves even on limestone
cliffs which are pretty harsh places to grow, so I would assume if there's
any soil at all to get started on, the fancier cultivars would do fine.
And if it's not quite a cliff but really only a steep-steep slope, that's
the sort spot they particular like, full sun with sharply draining soil.

-paghat the ratgirl
--
Get your Paghat the Ratgirl T-Shirt he
http://www.paghat.com/giftshop.html
"History, I believe, furnishes no example of a priest-ridden
people maintaining a free civil government." -Thomas Jefferson

junkyardcat wrote:

I like Vinca...mine has pretty purplish blue flowers on it, and it seems to
spread pretty quickly.

Angie in the boonies of East Texas

"Jim" wrote in message
...
I have recently cleared a hill in my yard. It's too steep for a lawn
mower
so I want to plant a ground cover. Does anyone have any suggesstions for
a
nice ground cover? I live in the mid-atlantic and the hill is fairly
sunny.
The hill is about 20' down and 60' across. Maybe more than one ground
cover?

If you choose vinca, use only V. minor. V. major can be very
invasive.

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean
Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean
influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19)
Gardening pages at URL:http://www.rossde.com/garden/

Jim wrote:

I have recently cleared a hill in my yard. It's too steep for a lawn mower
so I want to plant a ground cover. Does anyone have any suggesstions for a
nice ground cover? I live in the mid-atlantic and the hill is fairly sunny.
The hill is about 20' down and 60' across. Maybe more than one ground
cover?

Two low-growing ground covers are pink clover (knotweed, Persicaria
capitata, hardy to about 18F) and cinquefoil (Potentilla
neumanniana, hardy to 0F). They spread in solid mats of foliage
1-3 inches thick and have nice small flowers. You can then plant
shrubs, bulbs, or tall perennials through them.

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean
Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean
influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19)
Gardening pages at URL:http://www.rossde.com/garden/

David Ross wrote:
junkyardcat wrote:

I like Vinca...mine has pretty purplish blue flowers on it, and it
seems to spread pretty quickly.

Angie in the boonies of East Texas

"Jim" wrote in message
...
I have recently cleared a hill in my yard. It's too steep for a
lawn mower so I want to plant a ground cover. Does anyone have
any suggesstions for a nice ground cover? I live in the
mid-atlantic and the hill is fairly sunny. The hill is about 20'
down and 60' across. Maybe more than one ground cover?

If you choose vinca, use only V. minor. V. major can be very
invasive.

Vinca minor here in the PNW is *very* *aggressive*.

--

Travis in Shoreline (just North of Seattle) Washington
USDA Zone 8b
Sunset Zone 5