Flowering ground covers offer both practicality and aesthetic value.
Flowering ground covers provide the benefit of filling the landscape in difficult growing sites, along with offering some color variation in areas likely to see little flower production from common annuals and perennials. Ground covers grow in a wide range of problematic conditions, including deep shade, poor soil and drought. Does this Spark an idea?
Wild Geraniums
Wild geraniums, or cranesbill, are herbaceous perennials with several advantages. These cold-hardy plants tolerate drought and full sun, but also grow in shaded conditions. Blood-red cranesbill, or Geranium sanguineum, is one type of wild geranium that works especially well as a ground cover, according to University of Missouri Extension. It reaches about 12 inches in height, develops deep green leaves and produces 1-inch flowers in late spring. Flower colors include red, purple and pink, varying by cultivar.
Dianthus
Also known as pinks, these perennials develop carnation-shaped flowers every spring. They resist drought well and prefer sunny conditions. Dianthus gratianopolitanus, or Cheddar Pink, reaches up to 8 inches in height, flowering abundantly in the spring and providing a thick, lush green covering throughout the remainder of the growing season.
Sedum
Also known as stonecrop, these evergreen plants produce star-shaped flowers in the middle of summer that differ in color, according to the species. Common varieties include Sedum kamtschaticum and Sedum reflexum, both of which produce yellow flowers on stems approximately 6 inches in height. Other good choices of sedum for use as a ground cover include Sedum spurium, also known as Dragon's Blood sedum, and Brevifolium sedum, or Sedum album. Dragon's Blood develops clusters of red flowers on 4-inch stems while Sedum album produces white to pinkish flowers of a similar height.
Additional Choices
Thyme is a drought resistant perennial that comes in both shrubby or mat-developing species. Its light-colored summer flowers and pleasant fragrance make it an ideal choice in drought conditions. Petite pink Scotch rose makes another good option, reaching 2 to 3 feet in height and producing small pink flowers in May. Other choices include several species of ceanothus, cotoneaster and periwinkle. Ornamental grasses such as sheep fescue and sand dropseed also thrive in drought conditions, and while they do not produce flowers, they do develop seedheads that many homeowners find attractive in their own right.
Considerations
Even drought resistant plant species need regular watering their first year, to develop strong, deep roots which tide them over during periods of drought in subsequent years, according to the University of California. These ground covers offer resistance to drought, but still perform best when provided with some water throughout the hottest, driest parts of the growing season. Planting in the fall offers the best chance for plants to thrive, providing the longest possible period for acclimating to the new site before sustaining themselves through the hot summer months.
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