Ground cover for weed control

Posted on
Share this article   

75873676 - thymus serpyllum natural tea from mountain

People who love tending to their gardens can attest to the annoying presence of weed, a particularly hardy and hard-to-kill plant that lives rent-free in their plots of greenery.

Not only are they unsightly, leave them unattended for a while, and they grow swiftly to overwhelm the desired plants in the ground. Hence, garden maintenance often involves a great deal of weeding.

But why go through the back-breaking trouble to weed out your garden, when you can have the groundcovers to do it for you?

A hands-free solution

senior couple working in garden or at summer farm

Groundcover functions by replacing the weed that usually fills the empty spots on your garden. Unlike weed which can grow up tall and messy, groundcovers are usually low-lying and neat in their growth. They produce beautiful scented flowers and some even yield fruits to reward your efforts. Let’s observe a few of these groundcover species:

Periwinkle

Blue botanical periwinkle plant or vinca minor close up

Where aesthetics are concerned, few groundcovers beat the periwinkle. Gardens infested with periwinkles appear as sapphires interspersed within a sea of green. Their striking indigo flowers make for a pleasant and vivid imagery, not considering the lovely scent that complements their refreshing presence.

However, periwinkle is a competitive plant and is very much capable of spreading unchecked. Hence, planting periwinkles nearby to your other specimens is not a good idea as it may invade and choke them out.

On a different note, periwinkles aren’t fussy plants as they grow well in the sun or shade. Once properly established, they have no trouble stamping out the future growth of weed.

Roman Chamomile

Roman chamomile, Chamaemelum nobile

Another flowering alternative is the Roman Chamomile, which exhibits daisy-like flowers and feathery leaves. Besides the visual appeal, Chamomiles can be processed into essential oil for medicinal purposes. Similar to the periwinkle, it is a tough species, with a fortitude to withstand drought. The Roman Chamomile is best planted in dry soil and part shade.

Creeping thyme

Thymus serpyllum, known as Breckland thyme

This evergreen plant sports petite leaves that sprout in tight but tidy patterns. Even so, the creeping thyme develops a dry woody centre as the growth matures and pushes out, giving it a somewhat dishevelled appearance. They make up for that by standing up well to foot traffic. Do note that this plant requires a lot of light, and they will die in droves if shaded.

Lily of the Valley

flower, lily of the valley

Where groundcovers are concerned, people may assume them to be low-lying shrubs or grass-like plants. That is not the case, as a suitable ground cover functions to choke out weed while being aesthetically pleasing. The lily of the valley does just that, and as an added benefit, you can harvest them for your flower jug.

This plant stands a few feet tall at maturity, and it sports fragrant bell-shaped flowers. Unlike the creeping thyme, they do not hold up against foot traffic and are best kept on the side. It prefers partial shade and moist soil but can be adapted to full sun or shade, depending on the amount of moisture received.

These are but a few of the groundcover species you can utilise to populate the empty spots in your garden. Enough with the outdoors, let's bring your green fingers inside and try out some house plants at Filling your house with greens.


Stay ahead of the crowd and enjoy fresh insights on real estate, property development, and lifestyle trends when you subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on social media.

Want to contribute articles to StarProperty.my? Email: editor@starproperty.my
Related News

Fresh from the news oven

16:03 PM
News & Articles
13:03 PM
Property News
Latest News

Stories and news that might pique your interest

10:03 AM
News & Articles
10:03 AM
News & Articles
12:03 PM
News & Articles
16:03 PM
News & Articles
16:03 PM
News & Articles
10:03 AM
News & Articles
12:03 PM
News & Articles
16:03 PM
News & Articles
16:03 PM
News & Articles
16:03 PM
News & Articles
16:03 PM
News & Articles
17:03 PM
News & Articles
16:03 PM
News & Articles
10:03 AM
News & Articles
10:03 AM
News & Articles
16:03 PM
News & Articles
16:03 PM
News & Articles
11:02 AM
Home & Living
09:08 AM
Home & Living
10:07 AM
Home & Living
12:07 PM
Home & Living
14:07 PM
Home & Living
22:06 PM
Home & Living
00:03 AM
Featured Dev
00:03 AM
Featured Dev
00:03 AM
Featured Dev
08:02 AM
Featured Dev
08:02 AM
Featured Dev
00:12 AM
Featured Dev
22:11 PM
Events
10:09 AM
Events
10:09 AM
Events
12:09 PM
Events
12:05 PM
Awards 2023
11:01 AM
News & Articles
10:02 AM
News & Articles
11:11 AM
News & Articles
11:09 AM
Featured
17:04 PM
News & Articles
11:01 AM
News & Articles
11:11 AM
Investment
16:06 PM
Featured
16:06 PM
Investment
15:06 PM
Investment
12:07 PM
潮樓產業
14:07 PM
潮樓產業
10:07 AM
潮樓產業
16:07 PM
潮樓產業
14:07 PM
潮樓產業
12:07 PM
潮樓產業