Best ground cover plants to replace your lawn

Ground cover is a low-maintenance, low-growing, perennial plant that hide the ground below. Grass does not grow everywhere. For example, grass does not grow around rocks, in shady areas, steep surfaces.

Oregano

This flavourful herb is a common grass alternative for ground covers. Like most herbs, this plant likes full sun, warm weather and can grow anywhere.

For lawn ground covers, creeping oregano is popular sub species. Oregano can tolerate some foot traffic but not too much.

Chamomile

Chamomile is another herb ground cover. Chamomile flower tea can have a calming effect. It releases a pleasant apple daisy fragrance.

It likes a full sun and can produce a dense cover. Chamomile nobile is a creeping variety suitable for lawns.

This plant does not grow well with grass. Therefore, if you chose this as a ground cover on existing grass lawns, its better to remove grass first before planting chamomile.

This plant will tolerate some foot traffic.

Thyme

Thyme is drought tolerant. It likes full sun and is also used in rock gardens. It is hardy and can be grown vertically.

Thyme cannot take a lot of foot traffic.

It takes a while to start off. However, once it picks up growth it is relatively maintenance free. Common creeping varieties of thyme are coccineus, pseudolanuginosus are commonly used varieties as lawn grass replacements.

White clover

White clover is a low maintenance and can take a lot of foot traffic. It is drought tolerant and low maintenance.

White clover flowers is also a great attraction to pollinators. Its a nitrogen fixer and does not need fertilizing. It grows well with preexisting grass. Therefore, any gaps in clover over time can be easily covered by grass.

White clover is invasive and is difficult to get rid of once established

Red clover

Red clover is not a dwarf ground cover crop. But its a common cover crop and is a nitrogen fixer. It has beautiful flowers and is medicinal. Its a staple in permaculture garden although it can be invasive. Therefore, its better this is not planted in vegetable garden.

Lily turf

Lily turf plant is also called Monkey grass and it can grow with grass. This plant is easy to grow and low maintenance. It provides dense cover and does not require too much mowing.

It grows tall and cannot be easily walked over.

Sweet woodruff

Sweet woodruff likes acidic soil. That means that this plant will grow well under tall trees with a little sun. It is low maintenance and is quite invasive.

Creeping Charlie

This plant is also called ground ivy. This is a fast growing plant and it has medicinal uses. It is invasive and can be toxic to horses.

Moss

Moss is commonly used as cover for rocky areas. It grows well in shade and some varieties can also grow in sunlight also.Moss can tolerate some foot traffic. Too much foot traffic can trample moss and can patches that looks ugly.

While picking moss varieties to grow in your rock garden, it is best to pick native growing types. This is because native varieties are more aclimiatized to the local environment and more hardy to imported or non native varieties of grass. This makes native varities maintenance free. Moss prefers acidic soil and can propagate well.

One way to propagate moss is to blend moss and spread them on the areas where you want to grow them. This blend, or moss slurry, as it is sometimes called, is a common propagation method for moss.

Lithodora

Lithodora grows slowly and is known to block weeds. This plant grows bluish purple flowers which are pollinator friendly. This plant spreads thick and green ground cover.

Dwarf Mondo Grass

This grass can winter hardy and can grow upto -10° C. It grows thick folliage and is a good ground cover available in a few colours. This plant is however expensive. It tucks around flagstones in lawns.

This plant can tolerate sun but it grows well in afternoon shade too. It can also be a house plant. Under harsh sun this plant may fall back and may appear brownish. However, it bounces back under low sunlight.

Some varieites can be a little taller than the dwarf varieties commonly used ias lawn covers. There is a black mondo grass and a brown variety available for various growing zones.

Bugleweed or Ajuga reptans

Bugleweed is another popular ground cover plant. It produces blue flowers that attract pollinators. This is a member of the mint family and is a fast grower.

This plant can choke out weeds and can cover bald patches in the lawn where grass does not grow. It transplants well and is available in many colourful foliage.

In many areas, it is used to prevent soil erosion. Bugleweed is low maintenance and is deer resistant. It grows in well draining soil and can’t tolerate too wet or too dry areas.

Moneywort

Moneywort is also called Golden Creeping Jenny. Its leaves resemble coins. It likes full sun, part shade and likes loamy, clay soil. Leaves will blanch in harsh afternoon sun.

This plant is invasive, although a less invasive variety is also avaliable. Due to its highly invasive nature, this plant is planted in secluded parts of the garden or in containers.

Shrubs as ground cover

When everything else fails, shrubs can save your bacon! Certain places in your lawn, like under trees or around rocks, even grass does not grow.

Shrubs are drought tolerant and are inexpensive. They last multiple seasons, and can be pruned easily to look very attractive. They can be pruned down to the ground and they will bounce back in spring.

They grow in sun or shade and come in many vibrant colors and bear beautiful flowers in spring and autumn.

Prairie, Meadow

Let nature do its thing. Research what grows in your area and remove grass and invasive plants that were planted earlier. Convert part of your land to a meadow.

Lawn implements monoculture which is ecological antithesis of permaculture. It essentially goes against naturally occuring processes and therefore it takes effort to maintain a pristine lawn. You find yourself constantly fighting nature and her ecological systems.

It is better to give in to nature and grow a beautiful healthy garden full of sweet smelling medicinal plants that incorporate you as part of its cycles.

Edible ground covers

Ground covers can serve multiple purposes. Permaculture advocates multi use plants. Edible ground cover plants not only create beautiful ground cover, they also protect soil from the harsh sunlight while enabling helpful insects and enabling good quality soil.

Sweet potato

It can grow horizontally or vertically. It has large green leaves and both the vegetable and leaves are edible.

Along with sweet potato, the leaves and tender stems can be a spinach replacement and can be added to smoothies.

Nasturtium

Nasturtium is a versatile plant. It has large , dark green leaves that provide a good ground cover. It grows well in cooler periods. This plant dies down in warmer seasons. Thereform, it can be a winter replacement plant for sweet potatoes, for eg, that grow in warmer months.

It keeps the soil under the plant very cool as the leaves are large and create good canopy over soil. It bears beautiful flowers attract pollinators.

They have edible seed pods, leaves, stems, and flowers that are all edible. Seed pods can be pickled. Leaves, stems, and flowers can be added to curries, stir-fries and salads.

However, nasturtium can be invasive. They also attract slugs and snails. That means that in a permaculture garden they draw these harmful pests away from your vegetable garden. Also slugs, snails are a good chicken and duck food.

Sweet violet

Sweet violet grows all year round in shade. It produces a good ground cover that has edible leaves, that can be used as garnishing. Edible flowers are used in baking and food decoration.

Strawberries

Strawberries are full sun-loving, but it can grow in shade. It has edible ground cover for less established areas. Flowers are good garnishes. Can be done for small younger plants as picking flowers encourages more foliage plants.

They propagate well in runners. Strawberry leaves are used for teas and are medicinal. Alpine varieties are useful as ground covers and they are hardy although they produce smaller fruits.

Rosemary

Certain varieties are good groundcovers. Vertically growing rosemary is also popular as a wall facade. Flowers attract bees and are subtle flavour are used i baking. Anti inflammatory and is used for skin care.