Ground Cover Plants: Tough Plants for Hard Winters

Ground cover plants have a great variety of uses in just about any landscape. And even in the cold north, there is a variety of hardy ground cover plants that do very well. You can choose ground cover plants with hundreds of blooming flowers, ground cover plants that are evergreen, ground cover plants that are ferns or ground cover plants that are flowering grasses. Which ones you choose will depend on the type of soil, sun exposure and whether it is a slope or flat ground. Ground cover plants are also eco friendly. They need less water than grasses and do not need to be mowed, just cut back once in a while. There is a zone map http://www.usna.usda.gov/Hardzone/ushzmap.html available, but you can determine your own growing zone by the coldest winter temperature. Florida Gardener provides a great service. Put in your zip code, and it tells you your zone. Couldn't be simpler than that.

Achillea 'Coronation Gold' This ground cover is hardy in zones 2/3 - from the southern part of zone 2 to zone 9. Th flowers bloom from rom May to October in the colder zones, but are evergreen in the more temperate ones. This is one case where the colder climates get the best of the deal. It can replace a lawn or be a border around the lawn or garden areas. Deer do not like it, but butterflies do, it grows to about30' high, likes full sun and makes great cut flower arrangements, either alone or with other flowers.

Ajuga r. 'Gaiety' This is one of the most versatile of the ground covers. It is not fussy about where you plant it. It can take shade, part sun or full sun and is hardy in zones 3 to 10. It has leaves with a purple bronze tone and small lilac like flowers that bloom in the spring. The rest of the year, you have an evergreen. It goes great under trees or on a slope and is drought resistant as well.

Dennstaedtia punctilobula is also known as Hay Scented Fern and Eastern Hay Scented Fern. This is one of the toughest of the fern family, tolerating different types of soil. It will grow to form a green planet and is hardy in zones 3 to 8.

Euonymus f. 'Acutus' This ground cover is an evergreen It is a vine and can climb as well. It grows very fast, so you have to keep an eye on it to make sure it stays where you want it to, but the green and purple leaves make for a beautiful display. It can take just about any type of soil and sun, part sun or shade. Itis hardy in zones 4 to 9.

Liriope spicata is a flowering grass that is hardy in zones 4 to 10. The lavender/white flowers bloom in late summer and it has the extra benefit if killing off weeds. It like full sun, partial sun or shade and just about any soil type.