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What are these and how to tame them

10 years ago

I recently moved and I'm trying to tame the front yard/garden. I'm in a city so my front yard is one big postage stamp sized garden or at least it was at one point. There are two types of ground cover in the photo. Any direction on what they are and how to go about taming them is appreciated.

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Comments (7)

jeanne
10 years ago
Lamium galeobdolon variegatum
Vinca major
gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
10 years ago
Green and white leaves (top of photo) look like Lamiastrum, aka yellow archangel. In my location this is considered a noxious weed and should be removed/killed. Choices include manual removal (weeding out by hand) or herbicide (difficult if other, valuable plants in vicinity). It is just not "controllable".

Can't see second one clearly enough to establish an ID.

Here is a link that might be useful: Lamiastrum
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User
10 years ago
2. might turn out to be Euonymus fortunei 'Coloratus'
newinne
Original Author
10 years ago
Wow you guys are quick to reply. I do believe the top plant is Lamiastrum. Now I definitely don't feel bad about the plants I ripped out today. They were growing around the azaleas.

I don't think the lower one is vinca major but it may be Euonymus fortune Coloratus. I'll see if I can figure it out for sure.
lisanti07028
10 years ago
That's euonymus fortunei alright, and it is a horror to control. It will grow over and up anything, and root everywhere it touches. Good luck with both of these monsters.
newinne
Original Author
10 years ago
So would everyone just pull up both of these plants? The archangel seemed to come out easily enough, but the euonymous fortunei seemed pretty well rooted. It also appears be intentionally planted (not that that really matters) as it hangs over the retaining wall.
kimpa zone 9b N. Florida.
10 years ago
I have archangel and like it. But I have lots of ground to cover. It has been growing for around 10 years and makes a dense weed blocking ground cover.

You could just groom the edges away from other plants and wait to see what you want to do. I would not just go kill them now because of their reputation. If they are not full of weeds, they may be doing you a favor.

I have planted shrubs in the middle of my euonymus and just keep it cut away from the shrub base. Living mulch!

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