Hi I have the same trouble. I hope that a savy expert can help us. I am at lost, I have tried Princess Bermuda grass, and San Agustime palmetto. I want a nice grass to grow there but not luck at all. Hope somebody can help Thank you

nothing. aside from mondo grass (the dwarf variety), which is quite lovely and somewhat treadable but expensive and slow to spread, there's nothing.

What about Ivy or something?

I am trying peacock fern, so far, it is spreading nicely.

Why waste money on plants that are not going work? If there's that much shade, then go with mulch. If the area is really big, perhaps you could get some large, flat boulders to use as benches. Plant Bromeliads and ferns around them. But use Pine Bark Mulch for the rest of the garden and Pine Straw around the swings.

The area is already pretty covered with leaves, that's one of the reasons the grass doesn't grow there. I'm more concerned with the areas around that. There aren't any ground covers that work in shade that the dog can tromp through sometimes?

Sorry, but there really aren't. You asked about ivy... it gets bigger and taller than you expect and ends up being a lovely home for citrus rats. Rocks and mulch (leaf, pine bark, or pine needles) would be very nice.

what about asian jasmine? i have some under my grape arbor that is doing okay despite the dog. I don't think it would take lots of tromping.

I use mondo grass between pavers and it has taken the stomping of my little guy for a year. But it is pricey, you'd have to put in a lot of them.

Good luck!

ICK! NO RATS! I will never look at Ivy the same way again! Alright, mulch it is, with some shade loving plants along the fence, patio, and around the trees.

along the paths, consider adding some shade-loving, flowering annuals (impatiens, torenias) and perennials (Brunfelsia) in bit pots, lots of broms, azaleas, dietes vegata... full shade areas can be very pretty and low maintenance.

Polka Dot plants (Hypothenses??) are great plants for a ground cover. I have a whole area behind my pool screen that is filled with them. They come in green and white, pink and green, red and green, They do reseed themselves if you let them flower but if you are walking on them, that may not be a problem. They have filled in between the cracks in our stepping stones and do well in the winter if in a protected area by the trees. Try a few and see what you think.

Ha! Googling Hypothenses all I get related to plants is someone on GardenWeb asking about Polka Dot plants. :)

I've seen ajuga replens at HD in flats. I loved it in PA but don't know if it will last here. It is a flat purple-green leaf, spreads by runners, and flowers once a year with little purple spikes. Also, polka dot plant is hypoestes, but you've probably already figured that out.

Except for a few long runners of Saint Augustine grass, there was nothing growing under my three oak trees. I had planted one Wart Fern - Polypodium scolopendria under an orange tree at my previous home. When I moved out I pulled out about 50 strands of Wart Fern of various lengths to plants my oak trees at my new home. It is now growing very well under the three oak trees in my yard. Each frond stands 12"-15" straight up and they are spaced apart somewhat. Since the fronds are quite wide, from a distance it just looks like the ground is covered. I find the spacing between the fronds to be ideal for under my oak trees. Here in southwest Florida my oak trees drop leaves and branches all year. Since the fronds don't grow closely together the leaves and branches just fall on the ground between them. In two years the leaves have created a thick layer of mulch on our typical sandy soil. I leave the smaller branches where they fall because they can't be seen from a distance.

I have several areca palms growing in pots under the trees and they are growing well. However, the oak leaves tend to build up between the individual arecas because they grow so closely together. Personally I don't think Bromeliads and normal ferns are a good choice under oaks in Florida because the oaks leaves collect in their foliage.

The original question requested a groundcover that could be walked on. I make it a point not to walk on the Wart Fern because I believe that that would damage the stem of the fronds. Otherwise I find it to be an ideal plant for under oak trees in Florida.

How about pachysandra or vinca minor?

It's not native to Florida, but this past summer I had an invasion of Diamondflower weed through-out my yard. And I just let it grow. This stuff is super soft to walk on and took repeated pathing quite well, even in the one shady area. However, as temps started to drop, it was the first thing to disappear.

Agreeing w/ fawnridge - if this is an area where kids will be playing, mulch would likely be best for the most heavily trodden spots, since playing on it would probably kill anything else you plant.

I keep the leaves under my live oak as a groundcover (& it seems to keep the acorns from sprouting), w/ borders of bromeliads & ferns. I have a few shrubs that seem to be doing ok in the heavy shade: firebush, justicia & Panama rose, and/ a red-orange Phillipine violet (Barleria repens) that is a rather invasive groudcover, but easy to pull up.

Check out Floridata's plant list for info & lists of plants by desired features like shade, type, etc...

Here is a link that might be useful: Floridata

One advantage of allowing leaf cover is that it provides much needed habitat for birds whoprimarily feed among fallen leaves.

I was looking for something that could be walked on and found Thymus p. 'Coccineus' called the Walk-On-Me Plant or Mother of Thyme. It's a 3" tall, aromatic creeping thyme. Partial shade to full sun, rapid spreading. It even attracts butterflies. It sounds perfect for my needs and I think for yours, too.

Jasmine minima will grow under an oak (at least I have had that experience; everyone is different). It grows in full shade. Maybe you could try planting one as a test. As far as natives, there is Peperomia, 8 inches high. I do not have any experience with it, though. Peperomia grows in full shade to partial shade. Good luck!

If you were to trim the oaks (an arborist could do some light pruning) and let in some light shade, as an option, you would have Florida native Frog-fruit or Phylnodiflora. It gets 4 inches high and takes sun to partial shade. At that point, with partial shade, you would also have Perennial Peanut as a possibility, though I do not know its exact light requirements: it states full sun to partial shade.

But if that is not on the table for consideration, then the plants should be able to tolerate full shade. Oregano can be planted in the shade and gets 6 inches high, though I do not know how much foot traffic it can withstand.

Kids cannot run through jasmine. Bromeliads are guaranteed to breed mosquitoes. I hope the mulch worked out. I'd love an update from ktmeyer, as we are going through the same thing. Mulch or pea gravel.

well...if the OP or others are still looking for suggestions heres my ideas --- wild violets, viola, some low growing mints, like corsican, sorrel, thyme, pineapple weed, wild strawberries, self heal, clovers of all kinds, and quite a few others...are what i have been planting/spreading for filling in "lawn" type areas. and yes, for walking on.

great ideas thanks.still worried about all of the falling leave clean up