Photo: Acabashi (CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons) Photo: Acabashi (CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons) Photo: Acabashi (CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons) Climbing roses turn any vertical surface into a romantic floral paradise. Whether on house walls, rose arches, pergolas, or fences, their lush blooms in white, pink, red, and yellow bring height and drama to…
Photo: Joyce Cory on Flickr as docentjoyce (CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons) Photo: Mokkie (CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons) Photo: Mokkie (CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons) Honeysuckle (Lonicera) is one of the most sensuous climbing plants in the garden. Especially in the evening hours, it releases an intoxicatingly sweet fragrance that attracts moths and other…
Photo: Naturpuur (CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons) Photo: Netha Hussain (CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons) Photo: Dr. Jan Hinrichs-Berger, LTZ Augustenberg Referat 33 Karlsruhe (CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons) Thyme (Thymus) is far more than just a kitchen herb โ as a ground cover, it’s one of the most versatile and attractive of its kind….
Photo: Frantisek horak (CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons) Photo: Matt6798 (CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons) Photo: Agnieszka Kwiecieล, Nova (CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons) Creeping phlox (Phlox subulata), also known as moss phlox, is one of the most rewarding and colorful ground covers for sunny locations. From April to June, it transforms rock gardens, wall…
When it comes to filling difficult shaded ground with reliable, low-maintenance color, few plants beat periwinkle (Vinca minor). This evergreen trailing groundcover forms a dense, glossy carpet studded with violet-blue, star-shaped flowers from early spring into summer, and it thrives in exactly the spots where grass and many other plants struggle โ deep shade under…
Photo: GT1976 (CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons) Photo: GT1976 (CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons) Photo: GT1976 (CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons) An Unfussy Shrub for Year-Round Interest Cotoneaster is a large and varied genus of shrubs ranging from prostrate, ground-hugging forms like Cotoneaster horizontalis to upright hedging types and small trees, making it one of…
Photo: Agnieszka Kwiecieล (Nova) (CC BY 2.5, Wikimedia Commons) Photo: NasserHalaweh (CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons) Photo: Agnieszka Kwiecieล (User:Nova) (CC BY 2.5, Wikimedia Commons) The barren strawberry (Waldsteinia ternata), also called three-leaved golden strawberry, is an underrated yet extremely valuable ground cover for shady to partially shaded spots. With its bright golden-yellow, strawberry-like flowers…
The spider plant (Chlorophytum comosum) is a nearly indestructible classic, instantly recognizable by its arching rosettes of narrow, variegated leaves and the dangling baby plantlets, or ‘pups,’ it produces on long stems once mature. It has been a houseplant staple for generations for good reason: it is forgiving, fast-growing, and easy to multiply. Light Requirements…
String of hearts (Ceropegia woodii) is a delicate-looking but surprisingly tough trailing succulent, prized for its long, thin vines strung with small heart-shaped leaves marbled in silver and green, often with purple undersides. Native to South Africa, it stores water in both its leaves and a tuberous base, making it far more drought-tolerant than its…
String of pearls (Senecio rowleyanus) is one of the most distinctive trailing succulents, its long thin stems studded with tiny, nearly spherical leaves that store water like miniature green beads. Native to arid regions of southwest Africa, it has very specific light and water needs that, once understood, make it a rewarding hanging or trailing…
