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Florida Gardening

Groundcover for a large area

16 years ago

I'm trying to reduce lawn area and once I get my backyard pathway(s) done I plan to eliminate the lawn on at least one side of the path, maybe both. I'm OK with a few plants and lots of mulch on one side, but I would like a nice groundcover on the other. Something drought tolerant. The area has a western exposure so it will get full sun from late morning until afternoon. There will be some late afternoon shade from some palm and citrus trees. I don't want anything too high - not more than 8"-12"; lower would be OK.

I'll use some purple heart and a few broms & coleus where I can, but I would love to hear some alternatives.

So here it is:

- groundcover

- sun tolerant

- drought tolerant

- evergreen

- thick enough to choke out weeds

- does not need to stand up to traffic (except for the occasional Sheltie frolic)

Suggestions?

Kate

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Comments (12)

wanna_run_faster
16 years ago
Hi Kate,

Purple trailing lantana! See my comments under the carefree plants thread. :)
hopeful_in_Brevard
16 years ago
Kate: I am so impressed with native mimossa. It's very short, drought tolerent, produces pink powder puff type flowers, spreads pretty fast and keeps down weeds. It declines a little in the winter but springs back fast. I planted one small plant and it's covered a large area of my back bed in l 1/2 year. Thats one small plant. It's also called sensitive plant.
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I used to live in Texas and I really miss gardening there. It's been a challenge learning to grow in a different zone and at times can be overwhelming. I would go ahead and plant something under the oaks but keep in mind that most of the large roots of oaks run deep, but there will be feeder roots closer to the surface. With the age of these oaks I would recommend that you don't bother the roots anymore than you need to. I would also be very careful about over watering inside of the drip line, this is the area that really needs to be protected from excess water under oak trees. So it sounds like you need something that can withstand heat and drought. Sounds like a great spot for an alpine garden. Here's a list that may work. I think that whatever I was planting I would amend each hole as I planted rather than the entire area so as not to disturb to much of the bed. You may get away with adding a couple (not more) inches of sandy loam to help you get started but I would never consider covering up any of the area with plastic weed barrier. That would be a huge no no! IMHO Creeping Chamomile-Chamaemelum nobile, Double-flowered Chamomile-Chamaemelum nobile 'Flore Pleno' Cranesbill- I've use these before and they are great under oaks! Also some Heuchera would work well in that area and the foliage comes in so many different colors. If you want a simple ground cover that you don't need to water a lot and will spread this area, consider Muehlenbeckia axillaris, I think some people call it a wire vine? To keep it thick, mow it once a year. You could tuck a few bulbs in with it to provide some contrast in the spring and also include some of the fall blooming bulbs. The local wildlife may get the bulbs but you could take precautions against that. Put some tall things in to add interest. If not plants maybe some yard art or pots on stands with more colorful flowers growing in them. That's just my 2 cents worth. I'm sure what ever you decide it is going to turn out beautiful! As for the snakes, we use to buy this stuff called snake away and it worked great for us. A powder that smells awful when you put it down and we bought it at the feed store so maybe some feed stores near you would have the product. Sorry this was so long, I didn't mean to hog up your question.
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solstice98
Original Author
16 years ago
I like lantana and it certainly is hardy. Nice butterfly attractor too. And fairly inexpensive to put in several plants at once. The purple would match with the purple firespike and purple heart I have back there.

I appreciate the mimosa suggestions and I love the flowers, but isn't that one of the plants considered invasive in Florida. Is there a native version that's different?
AmberSky
16 years ago
The sunshine mimosa is a native, but the lantana is invasive (unless it's lantana camera).
saccharum
16 years ago
solstice, you may be thinking of the mimosa tree (Albizia julibrissin), which is invasive. Sunshine mimosa (Mimosa strigillosa) is a native.

Ambersky, Lantana camera is the invasive one, unless it's a seedless variety. Trailing lantana, Lantana montevidensis, is not known to be invasive, as far as I know.
laura1
16 years ago
I've used scorpion tail for that purpose. It readily seeds and grows fast. It can be a little invasive but it did what I needed it to do when I needed it. After about 18-24 months the plants get kind of tired and I pulled them out but there were more to replace them. Eventually I phased them out as my other landscape matured. I got my original plants by trading for them. They aren't something usually found at HD.
fawnridge (Ricky)
16 years ago
Mounds of Blue Daze (18" high at best) with large stepping stones interplanted with river rock and Dwarf Mondo Grass. Hilight the area with Bromeliads - use Neo's so you have no maintenance, a few flowering Aloe beds, and a piece of artwork set as a focal point.
nami
16 years ago
kate how about purslane its a succulent so less watering and the flowers are pretty shades of pink, yellow n orange. it grows horizontally rather than vertically.

ricky i really like ur idea but i have a few questions. where can i find dwarf mondo grass? does this have to be done in a straight line?
AmberSky
16 years ago
OOps, so right about the L. depresa. Thanks.

How about rosemary and a mounding basil, at least in parts of it?
juneroses Z9a Cntrl Fl
16 years ago
Baby sun rose or aptenia cordifolia is a versatile possibility. I'm in Central Florida and have seen both the red flowered and the yellow flowered versions growing and thriving in both sun and shade in my community.

It's a low growing succulent with 1/2" heart shaped apple green leaves and the red or yellow flowers. It's easily rooted from cuttings and seems to be a passalong plant in our garden club.

The red flowered one is also known as Red Apple.

Here is a link that might be useful: Baby sun rose
zozzl
16 years ago
Sedum dragon's blood red. I haven't tried it yet but I have a trade coming with a bunch of it. You can have some because you told me about the T. erecta and I found one today at the Central Florida Flea Market:) Yellow trailing lantana looks really good with the purple trailer too.

Pat
solstice98
Original Author
16 years ago
Very creative ideas!

Pat - thanks for the offer of the sedum and I'm so glad you found the Thunbergia!

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