Increasingly, the colored islands of ground cover perennials cover the adjacent territories. These are spectacular plants that allow you to create unique landscapes, set the necessary accents and hide the flaws of the landscape. In the article we will provide the names, characteristics and photos of the most popular colors, consider the main recommendations for caring for them.
General information
The advantage of ground cover perennials is that with their help you can fill in the unsightly voids that are on any household plot. They are able to grow even where lawn grass cannot always take root. For example, under trees with a dense crown or on stony soil.
Too wet places or sandy soil contributes to the formation of vacant lots, which spoil the appearance of the entire territory. Such flaws can be corrected by planting plants that play the role of decorative soil shelter. The main thing is to choose the right type of perennial. They are drought-resistant, moisture-loving, shade-tolerant and photophilous. There are plants that can tolerate harsh winter conditions.
Agrotechnical benefits of perennials
First of all, creeping flowers are planted as decoration for borders, flower beds and rabatka. Ground cover perennials are also used for the garden, in combination with stone elements. However, this is not the only task of these wonderful lawns. It turns out that they are able to facilitate the work of the owners in the infield. Here are a few benefits you can get from plants:
- In the 2-3rd year, the flowers so tightly tighten the soil cover that the weeds can no longer make their way. Work on the cultivation of the site will have in the first year of life of creeping rugs.
- Protect the fertile soil layer from leaching during heavy rains, especially in areas located at an angle. When the soil is less blown by the wind, it retains moisture and nutrients. Plants also do their service here.
- If you intend to develop wastelands on your site in the future, then perennials will help to maintain and improve the fertility of the earth in these places, saturating it with oxygen. Thus, they to some extent perform the functions of a siderat plant.
- And the last - they successfully hide landscape defects.
Saxifrage
Saxifrage gained considerable popularity in landscape designs. The plant found its place among the stones. As if dissecting them, the perennial cleverly makes its way between cracks and any indentations where there is at least a little soil. And this is not surprising, because in nature, mountain slopes, rocks and other rocky hills are favorite places of its habitat.
These wonderful flowers manage to realize themselves in a fairly short time. They create picturesque coverings in the form of magnificent lumps with delicate small flowers. Photo saxifrage is in our review. It looks great in small plant combinations, forming a bright island.
Suitable conditions: a tenacious flower loves the sun and slight moisture, but so that the soil between the waterings has time to dry out. Before planting, it would be nice to plant a small amount of limestone rubble in the ground. Saxifrage grows well on moderately fertilized soils. However, it all depends on the species. For example, there are shady species that feel great on the north side.
In total, there are about 30 varieties of this plant. The most common of them are: soddy bryophyte, bluff (cotyledon), saxifrage, magnificent colearis, saxifrage-young.
Sedum
The group of undersized ground cover perennials is an indispensable find for rock gardens and garden plots. They form bright clearings, bloom very plentifully and have a wide range of varieties:
- Sedum rocky blooms in August, has gorgeous descending shoots with densely arranged leaves of gray color. The color of the flowers is bright raspberry.
- Stonecrop (sedum) scapularis blooms in July. Its peculiar leaflets in their shape resemble roses.
- Stonecrop mountain is distinguished by small, long leaves and yellow flowers. A beautiful rug pleases the eye throughout the summer period.
- Stonecrop with original round leaf plates releases its white flowers in June. The rug itself is low, but it draws the earth well and forms a very thick gray-white mass.
- Sedum of Evers blooms in early summer, has pink flowers.
- Stonecrop is characterized by higher growth and small leaves. In June, releases green and yellow flowers in the form of stars.
- Stonecrop false - a bright hybrid with colorful leaves of green hues. The flowers are different - white, pink, red. Having acquired such a plant, it will be possible to admire the variegated creeping bedspreads throughout the summer.
Growing conditions: sedum, or stonecrop, likes to grow in sunny places, it will not bloom for a long time in the shade. It grows on all types of soil, does not require abundant watering. It is able to grow locally with a minimum amount of soil. Using this feature, you can create a decorative flower pot from it or plant stonecrop inside a log.
Chistets woolly
Winter-resistant ground cover perennial, preserving decorative qualities throughout the year. Popularly, this plant is known as "sheep’s ears." All its beauty lies in unusual leaves. The greenish-gray plates are covered with a white fluff with a silver tint. In spring, white flowers bloom on a noble background. They need to be cut after flowering. Firstly, it will give an opportunity to better grow leaves and bushes in general, they will become more dense and rich. Secondly, dry flower stalks will spoil the appearance of the mat.
Conditions: the purge grows in well-lit places, neither heat nor drought are terrible for him. But he does not tolerate stagnation of water and can die under excessive moisture. Sandy, rocky soil is suitable for it, so it is good to plant it on alpine slides. Thanks to the silver color of the leaves, it fits well into the mix border.
Periwinkle
This well-known plant can rightly be called the evergreen and the most hardy. From a long time periwinkle decorates personal plots of private houses. It is one of the shade-tolerant groundcover perennials, forms an elastic dense canvas of a rich green color. In a simple periwinkle, the flowers have a blue color. Thanks to a breakthrough in the field of floriculture, the spectrum of shades of this plant has replenished.
There is a perennial variety with blue flowers and a white border. Often in the compositions of rabatok there is a periwinkle of pink, red and raspberry shades. New varieties are well planted in the near-trunk part of trees. Cheerful islands in the shade cheer up on a hot day.
Growing conditions: periwinkle is extremely unpretentious, quickly spreads and suppresses various types of weeds. Rocky soil and shaded areas are familiar to him. At one place can exist more than 6 years.
Drought tolerant plants
To unpretentious groundcover perennials can be attributed to the warbler felt. This is a pretty creeping weed. She comes to life in early spring and looks attractive until the deepest autumn. In late spring, many white flowers appear on long cuttings. It is advisable to cut them immediately after flowering, since they themselves do not fall. Dry flower stalks last very long on the bushes and do not harmonize with the aesthetic appearance of the plant. Felted stalk has an incredibly fast ability to grow. To save herself from the laborious process of digging up extra bushes, she needs to create powerful borders. It would be nice to dig fences into the ground to stop the roots of the plant.
Where better to plant: the rug is able to develop on poor soil in direct sunlight. Particularly abundant stalk blooms in elevated areas. In low-lying damp places, its root system can rot.
Another drought tolerant representative is creeping thyme. This is a widespread medicinal plant, found in hilly areas, steppes and along roads. Thyme, as it is also called, has increasingly been used in the design of personal plots. It has original lilac flowers and a pleasant characteristic aroma. Suitable for decorating garden paths made of stones and carpet combinations in combination with other creeping flowers.
Landing requirements: has increased survival, grows in the poorest and driest sandy areas. He absolutely does not need feeding. It is good to combine with coniferous plants. An ideal place for its cultivation is a decorative bed with various spices.
Creeping
Phlox awl - one of the most striking creeping ground cover perennials. It covers vast areas with a colorful carpet and becomes the real pride of the garden. There are three colors of flowers: white, raspberry and purple. The first time blooms in late May, the second in September. At the same time, numerous motley flowers overshadow the greenery - the leaves are barely visible through the bright rug. Phlox will look good against a background of plants with decorative large leaves.
Care: for the bright inhabitant of the garden, you need to prepare loose alkaline soil with the addition of dolomite flour and sand. The plant may not tolerate stagnant moisture. Mandatory for him is a winter shelter. This will also protect it from excessive moisture during spring snowmelt.
Clove grass is considered a winter-hardy groundcover perennial. She tolerates harsh conditions and frosts. The plant forms a fairly dense network of roots. Medium-sized shoots upward during flowering. She has narrow, light green leaves. It has an unusually pleasant aroma and has a long flowering period (from early June to mid-July). Raspberry flowers, similar in shape to stars.
Where to plant: in comparison with other perennials, cloves are more demanding. She loves fertile land and sunny places. In shaded areas, it does not bloom.
Landing
Already a little mention was made of the requirements of ground cover perennials. Each individual species reacts differently to lighting, moisture, and soil composition. Therefore, when planting flowers, these factors must be taken into account. Important details are such as free space, design style and combination with other plantings. Consider the general rules for growing decorative rugs:
- Choosing the right place for flowers should be based on their varietal characteristics. It is important to know that plants should be planted on poor soil. Enriched, nutritious soil significantly reduces the number of colors. An excess of substances will go into the growth of the bush during its vegetative development. When buying seeds, you need to immediately find out all the nuances of caring for plants, since among them there are those that still need top dressing.
- Sowing of ground cover perennials is carried out in April or September. In subsequent years, the glade of plants is corrected by separation, bush, cuttings and cutting off excess shoots. The seedless method involves planting shoots at a certain distance, taking into account their further growth.
- Immediately you need to think about the fence, since most creeping plants very quickly fill the free space and are able to destroy other flowers.
- It is not recommended to remove stems with faded flowers. In the winter, they perform a number of useful purposes: they die off on their own, dry out, rot, and fertilize the soil, and serve as a mulching layer for the roots.
Design Guidelines
Among modern summer residents, the planting of ground cover flowers, perennials has long been a familiar phenomenon. They are best used in the design of miniature flower beds and compositions. In such decisions, attention should be paid to the height of the mat. For example, with the help of Rogersia, you can arrange and wider open spaces, sedum or cloves will perfectly decorate a small area.
If you are going to plant several types of plants in one flower garden, then you need to combine them in groups. Lower perennials are in the foreground, the shape and shades of the colors should be combined.
Ground cover perennials of the same type must be planted in batches, otherwise the flower bed will look poor. They are also used as fences for other flower gardens.
Forming flower beds, you need to visually represent their future background. After all, the plants will spread out, close together and will look different. In this case, you need to immediately take the reserve of space.
Conclusion
In this review, only some of the available varieties of creeping plants were presented. Thanks to the wide range, you can always choose the right plant for individual decorations. Making your site, use the ideas from our article. For example, a photo of a saxifrage against a background of stones looks quite impressive. Perhaps you will pay attention to an extraordinary representative from the group of stonecrops, who spread his rich carpet of gray leaves.