Explore the Best 9 Ground Cover Plants for UK Landscaping

Posted on 15/05/2025

Explore the Best 9 Ground Cover Plants for UK Landscaping

Looking to enhance your landscape with low-maintenance, beautiful greenery? Discover these top ground cover plants ideal for UK gardens. Whether you're aiming to fill out a rockery, cover a slope, or add texture under shrubs, ground covers can transform your garden into a vibrant haven. This article explores nine versatile choices that thrive in various conditions across the UK.

1. Creeping Thyme (Thymus serpyllum)

Perfect for sunny spots, Creeping Thyme offers a wonderful blend of fragrance and function. A delightful herb, this plant forms a dense mat, ideal for filling in pathways or between stepping stones. It produces vibrant pink or purple flowers in the summer.

• Growth Conditions: Full sun, well-drained soil
• Highlights: Drought-resistant, attracts bees, fringe of pink or purple flowers

2. Chamomile (Chamaemelum nobile)

A classic choice for lawns and foot traffic areas, Chamomile is known for its soothing fragrance and delicate flowers. Unlike its tall counterparts used in teas, this ground cover variety remains short and mat-forming.

• Growth Conditions: Full sun, well-drained soil
• Highlights: Aromatic, compatible with light foot traffic, evergreen

3. Wooly Thyme (Thymus pseudolanuginosus)

For a tactile experience, Wooly Thyme features soft, woolly leaves. This plant's grey-green foliage makes it a unique choice for borders or rock gardens. It's as tough as it is charming, able to withstand occasional droughts.

• Growth Conditions: Full sun to partial shade, well-drained soil
• Highlights: Soft texture, drought-tolerant, subtle pink flowers in late spring

4. Bugleweed (Ajuga reptans)

Bugleweed is an excellent choice for shaded areas. With its glossy, dark green leaves and spikes of deep blue flowers, it provides color where other plants might struggle. Its vigorous growth makes it great for large ground coverage.

• Growth Conditions: Partial to full shade, moist soil
• Highlights: Spreads rapidly, vibrant foliage, low-maintenance

5. Periwinkle (Vinca minor)

Unfazed by less-than-ideal soil, Periwinkle is a top pick for areas beneath trees. This hardy plant offers glossy green leaves and cheerful blue, white, or purple flowers that bloom in the spring.

• Growth Conditions: Partial shade to full shade, any well-drained soil
• Highlights: Evergreen, erosion control, tolerates poor soil

6. Japanese Spurge (Pachysandra terminalis)

For a lush, carpet-like ground cover, opt for the hardy Japanese Spurge. It's particularly effective under large shrubs and trees thanks to its evergreen nature and compact growth.

• Growth Conditions: Full shade to partial shade, moist soil
• Highlights: Dense foliage, deer-resistant, white blooms in early spring

7. Sweet Woodruff (Galium odoratum)

Known for its delicate star-shaped flowers and sweet scent, Sweet Woodruff thrives in shaded areas. It's an excellent choice for creating a whimsical, fairy garden feel.

• Growth Conditions: Full to partial shade, moist and well-drained soil
• Highlights: Scented leaves, spreads easily but non-invasive, white spring flowers

8. Ground Morning Glory (Convolvulus sabatius)

With its bright blue flowers and trailing habit, Ground Morning Glory adds a splash of color to sunny spaces. It's perfect for cascading over walls or filling in gaps among other perennials.

• Growth Conditions: Full sun, well-drained soil
• Highlights: Drought-tolerant, low-growing vine, vivid blooms throughout summer

9. Sedum (Sedum spp.)

Sedum, or stonecrop, is a diverse genus with varieties suitable for almost any garden condition. For ground cover, choose low-growing species which form tight mats of succulent leaves and can display a riot of colors in fall.

• Growth Conditions: Full sun to light shade, well-drained soil
• Highlights: Low water needs, variety of colors and textures, attractive to pollinators

Conclusion

Adding ground cover plants to your landscape can enhance not only aesthetics but also the functionality of your garden. From sunny slopes to shaded woodland edges, the UK offers the perfect climate for these hardy plants. Choose from these top nine options to create a lush, colorful, and sustainable landscape that requires minimal upkeep. Regardless of the conditions in your garden, by selecting the right ground cover plants, you can enjoy a verdant carpet of greenery all year round.