Wednesday 30 April 2008

Groundcovers

Evolvolus pilosus, blue daze, does like a sunny, dry spot. I have planted out large areas also partly in the shade, grows well, flowers practically all year round. From time to time they need a haircut.



Cuphea rosea lavender lace is an excellent groundcover.



White Cuphea as groundcover and a self sown daylili peeks out.



I use a lot of Bromeliads as ground covers. I have a fairly shaded garden so they do very well as long as they get enough sunlight to get the good colours.

From my trees, I have many, I collect all the shed leaves, twice a year. Australian native trees shed leaves in spring and exotic tree shed theirs in autumn. I use all the dry leaves in my garden also to suppress weeds from growing. I am not so much plagued with weeds any more. Now I have only a couple of areas where I have to be vigilant, the sunny areas are much more prone to weeds.



Bromeliad Aechmea Orlandiana, brilliant red bracts with yellow flowers. The edges of this plant are saw like and sharp. One has to be careful when handling this one. Nevertheless it is a splendid ground cover. Also when not in flower it is an attractive plant.




Spend Camellia flowers falling to the ground can look attractive for a short time



Varigated Bromeliad, Aechmea Apocalyptica has striking flowers pink tipped sky blue. This is a very good plant to use as a groundcover. It is easily propagated from pubs growing on the side of the mother plant. The leaves are smooth it grows well but is not invasive.




Rhoeo bermudensis variegata now renamed Tradescantia spathacea variegata. This is an excellent groundcover also easily to propagate. It prefers to grow in half shade.





This Platypus was made by Lilli. It should hang on a wall but it has found a home in the herb garden leaning against a rock

The Platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) is a semi-aquatic mammal endemic to eastern Australia, including Tasmania. Together with the four species of echidna, it is one of the five extant species of monotremes, the only mammals that lay eggs instead of giving birth to live young. It is the sole living representative of its family (Ornithorhynchidae) and genus (Ornithorhynchus), though a number of related species have been found in the fossil record.
The bizarre appearance of this egg-laying, venomous, duck-billed, beaver-tailed, otter-footed mammal baffled European naturalists when they first encountered it, with some considering it an elaborate fraud. It is one of the few venomous mammals; the male Platypus has a spur on the hind foot that delivers a venom capable of causing severe pain to humans. The unique features of the Platypus make it an important subject in the study of evolutionary biology and a recognizable and iconic symbol of Australia; it has appeared as a mascot at national events and is featured on the reverse of the Australian 20 cent coin.
Until the early 20th century it was hunted for its fur, but it is now protected throughout its range. Although captive breeding programs have had only limited success and the Platypus is vulnerable to the effects of pollution, it is not under any immediate threat.




This attractive Vriesia works also well as a groundcover. Propagates well from pups. Vriesias generally like to grow in the shade.





Mexican Sage, Salvia leucantha is strictly speaking not a ground cover. I have found if it is planted densely it does a good enough job in this regard, and it is such a beautiful, hardy plant in full sun. I propagates easily from cuttings or from root divisions.

I saw this lovely moth sticking to my "dotty" pants, in the morning when I went out to hang out the washing. I was so pleased when I saw this pretty night flyer I had to get the camera and it was obliging. I think, what you see, sees you too!




Bromeliad Neoregelia with smooth leaves. If it gets enough sun it colours well with lime green blotches. This one too I have propagated from pups many times.




Rhoeo also renamed to Tradescantia spathacea. The underside of the leaves is dark purple. A good reliable groundcover that increases reasonable well and is also easy to propagate from small plantlets that grow on the side of the mother plant.



Sansevieria trivasciata dwarf Silver Hahnii makes an attractive, hardy and quickly growing groundcover.




Neoregelia is a supberb groundcover. Deep red nests in flowering time, quick growing and increasing for covering big aereas.






Helichrysum italicum is a silver grey groundcover susceptible to wet feet! Propagates well from fresh cuttings.




Erigeron groundcover, perennial, sets seed, this plant can make good thick mats with myriads of daisy flowers. It also threads itself, if you let it, through other plants and looks always attractive and never without flowers.



Believe it or not:

Any man that walks the mead In bud, or blade, or bloom, may find a meaning suited to his mind.~Alfred Tennyson






































































































10 comments:

Anonymous said...

You have some lovely ground cover plants.
I truly thought the moth was part of the fabric till I read your post. The colour is very suitable for a night moth. It looks beautiful and rather unreal.

Meems said...

Titania: I just love ground covers and I am working on a similar post for my blog...

I have almost every plant you have growing. The bromeliads are one of my favorites. They are so easily grown in our climes and yet so exotic looking.

You've done a very nice job of displaying all the varied species to use for ground cover. I've never thought of the mexican sage as a ground cover but now that you mention it - it does spread nicely.

You are so good with all the names, too. I'm impressed. I just plant and go and if it works for me then I'm happy. I'm trying to get better about knowing the names.

Is your season turning to winter now? If so, what is that like?

Have a great weekend!
Meems @hoe&shovel

Lavender and Vanilla Friends of the Gardens said...

Easygardener thank you for your comment. I do like night moth. We have very big ones and I hope that I can catch one with my roving camera!

Lavender and Vanilla Friends of the Gardens said...

Meems thank you. I am looking forward seeing your groundcover post. I have more groundcovers, which I will post later, when they are flowering. Meems, I think the worst names to keep are the latin names of ferns, I am hopeless!)
We have now autumn, winter starts on the 1.of June. The day time is still very warm and sunny in general; 25-28 C (60-70 F I think)
We have seldom frosts and when, only in very low lying areas. I can't have plants which need frosts to flower like Tulips etc.

Kerri said...

I've just recently become interested in ground covers, and your post illustrates how so many plants can be used in this way. Our youngest daughter's beau gave me a wonderful book of ground covers last Christmas which I've found very educational.
You have so many fascinating plants, and you're a very good teacher :)

Unknown said...

Thank you for leaving a comment on my blog. You have a beautiful garden. I especially liked the bromeliads, they look even more exotic than the ones I have. Really enjoyed my visit.

Lavender and Vanilla Friends of the Gardens said...

Kerri and Kanak, thank you both so much for your visit and kind comment.

Anonymous said...

hello,this is a wonderful presentation on ground covers. Am working on them in my workplace but am stuck on the choices to make. I live in the tropics in a semi dry area and i'd like to plant ground covers along open driveways,what can you advise me to plant? thank you.

Anonymous said...

A good post on groundcovers.

I found this website useful for Herb Gardening tips http://www.herbgardeningtoday.com. I think you guys will find it interesting too.

Thanks,
Peter - Home herb garden

Sunita Mohan said...

Hello Trudi! I just revisited this post of yours trying to find out more about your aechmea apocalyptica. I just bought one myself and have never grown them before. Any tips?