AJUGA, desparate the only thing in the ground that looks good now

esther_opal

15 years ago

Ajuga is the only thing in the ground that looks good right now, I'm so easily amused.

Is there an ajuga forum?

Here is a link that might be useful: more ajuga

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Comments (12)

just1morehosta
15 years ago
My hosta are still lookin good,this rain sure has perked them up.

Ajuga,not one of my favorites.But it does have a nice purple color,and a pretty blue flower.

Carol
pzelko
15 years ago
Nice ajuga there EO, I often wondered if it was edible and could be tossed in a salad. Sorry that anything else in your yard doesnt look as nice.

Paul
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possible good place for ajuga???
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Lots of people think ajuga is messy and aggressive...I love it! But it sometimes takes a while to fill in the bare spots and doesn't stand up well to snow plow damage. It will co exist with many other ground covers....what were you thinking of? I wouldn't take a string trimmer to it...I would use a hedge trimmer...or ignore it. And it won't choke out weeds....you will need to use Preen to keep them down. Ever think of sweet woodruff? might fill in faster. Linda C
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goldedger
15 years ago
Nice Ajuga EO

Mine grew so well under my maple tree that I dug it all up, that and the lily of the valley. I missed a piece or two.

I'll bet there's still some nice looking hostas in your gardens.

June
upnort
15 years ago
hmmm,,,my yard is still going great. That is the parts left that I havent torn down or dug up or piled up or treaded over or ignored. Other than that, yeah, still looking perky.
aahostas
15 years ago
Butch,
I have an Ajuga called "Burgandy Glow'. The center of the plant is a burgandy green combo and the outer edges are bright burgandy with white and silver edges.It is quite stunning and tough.On a hot day it will wither up and look dead. Then just a little spray from the hose and it will perk up loke nothing happened.Kinda like me and coffee!

Denny
greenthumbz4mn
15 years ago
EO--Nice perfect looking ajuga. I became an Ajuga lover this summer when I took a whole bunch that was crowding out my main garden and planted them on the hillside with some Hosta. They look gorgeous there, can spread to their heart's content, and seem extremely happy--wish I had done it sooner! :0) The bonus is that I now have all these babies in my main garden which can grow for a while and then I'll move them to the hill also. Mary
esther_opal
Original Author
15 years ago
"I took a whole bunch that was crowding out my main garden and planted them on the hillside with some Hosta."
greenthumbz4mn

Ajuga can be used to stabilize a slope using poly spun-bonded landscape cloth.

Here is a link that might be useful: Ground covers for erosion control
arcy_gw
15 years ago
Gosh that is too bad, I am loving my gardens right now. Creeping Jenny, vinca, hydrangia, looking good, toad lilies about to bloom, some hosta just blooming. I only have a few short weeks left but I am savoring every look!
jel48
15 years ago
buff24
15 years ago
Wow, that shows what I know... I always thought there was just 1 kind of ajuga, and that it was a very invasive weed. Neat to know there are actual varieties!

Buff
esther_opal
Original Author
15 years ago
"I always thought there was just 1 kind of ajuga,"
buff

Not to turn this to an ajuga forum but it is a nice companion plant for hosta. My post was a bit of a joke because we've suffer a pretty deep drought.

There are several, I prefer the crispa and chocolate chip types. A.'Crispa' and several that are similar grow quite dense and hold down weeds because weeds have a hard time getting through the dense mat. Hosta will shade them out pretty well so they live well together. They have broader application yet they can be controlled with weed-b-gone type broadleaf sprays.

And there are several variegated varieties as Denny mentioned, my limited experience is they revert easily so maintaining in a pot would be good.

Here is a link that might be useful: Did you see crispa?
jel48
15 years ago
I'm not sure what the variety is that I posted the pic of earlier today. I was just doing the photos when Gary came in and was ready to leave the house so I just posted the one and didn't even take time to type. There was a good sized patch of this in the sunken down old garden that was here at the house when we bought it. We dug them all up, saved them by the bucket full, and put them back in as companion plants to the hosta in the center bed. I love the looks of this particular ajuga and it really is a great companion plant to hostas!

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AJUGA, desparate the only thing in the ground that looks good now

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just1morehosta

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AJUGA, desparate the only thing in the ground that looks good now

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