Groundcover

Choose by the job, not the photo

Groundcovers fail when they are picked for looks and asked to do work they cannot do, so be honest about the task first.

• Lawn replacement with light foot traffic. No mow grass (Zoysia tenuifolia), kidney weed (Dichondra repens), white pratia and thyme all take being walked on occasionally. None handle daily kids and dogs traffic like turf does.
• Weed suppression on banks and slopes. Creeping boobialla (Myoporum parvifolium), Grevillea 'Carpet Layer', juniper and pigface root as they spread, binding soil while they smother weeds.
• Dry, sunny and coastal ground. Gazanias, seaside daisy, pigface, blue chalk sticks and silver carpet thrive on heat, sand and salt with almost no summer water.
• Shade. Native violet, mondo grass, ajuga and selaginella carpet the ground under trees and on the south side of buildings where lawn gives up.
• Edges, spillers and detail. Silver falls dichondra pours over walls and pots, liriope and lomandra tidy borders, and pratia stitches paving joints together.

Where groundcovers work in Australian gardens

In hot dry climates around Perth, Adelaide and inland towns, succulent and silver leafed covers such as pigface, gazania and dymondia do the work lawns cannot, staying green through water restrictions. In humid Brisbane and coastal New South Wales, choose covers that cope with summer downpours and airflow, such as native violet, dichondra and lomandra. Cooler southern gardens suit ajuga, thyme, pratia and heuchera, all frost hardy. Nearly everything here also earns its keep on retaining walls and slopes, where spreading roots hold batters together and trailing growth softens the hard edges.

Spacing: how many plants per square metre

Spacing decides both your budget and how long the bare dirt phase lasts. As working numbers:

• Vigorous spreaders (creeping boobialla, pigface, Grevillea 'Carpet Layer'): 1 plant per square metre, 80cm to 1m apart. Cover in 12 to 18 months.
• Medium spreaders (gazania, seaside daisy, ground morning glory, thyme): 3 to 4 per square metre, 50cm apart. Cover in about a year.
• Small carpeters (pratia, kidney weed, native violet, ajuga): 5 to 6 per square metre, 40cm apart. Cover in one to two growing seasons.
• Tufting plants (mondo, liriope, lomandra): these do not run, so plant at their finished width, 15cm for dwarf mondo up to 40cm for lomandra.

For instant coverage with zero establishment gap, our plant tiles arrive as pre grown mats ready to lay like turf.

Getting groundcovers established

Kill or remove every weed before planting, because you cannot weed inside a groundcover later without pulling the cover with it. Plant into moist soil, water in, then mulch the gaps 50mm deep so weeds do not claim the open ground first. Water twice a week for the first 8 to 10 weeks, then taper off; most of this range is genuinely drought tolerant once rooted. Feed once in spring with a controlled release fertiliser, using a low phosphorus native food for boobialla, grevillea and other natives. A light trim along paths and edges once or twice a year keeps everything inside its lane.

Common questions

Which groundcovers can I actually walk on?

No mow grass, kidney weed, pratia, thyme and dichondra handle regular light foot traffic, stepping stones recommended for the daily route. Gazanias, boobialla and the succulents would rather you did not.

What gives the fastest coverage?

Creeping boobialla and pigface are the sprinters, each covering more than a square metre within a season in warm weather. Planting any spreader closer together buys speed too; halving the spacing roughly halves the wait.

Will groundcovers stop weeds completely?

Once closed over, a dense cover blocks almost all new weed germination, which is the point of a living mulch. The vulnerable window is the first few months, so mulch the gaps and stay on top of intruders until the canopy knits.

Do I ever mow no mow grass?

Not for survival. Left alone it forms soft green mounds about 10cm high; if you prefer a flatter lawn look, one high cut in late spring is plenty.

How do groundcovers arrive?

Most ship as healthy plants in 140mm pots or economical tubestock, delivered Australia wide with delivery from $29.95 and our 30 day healthy plant guarantee. Grasses and strappy leafed options are covered in more depth in grasses for landscaping.