Best Ground Cover Plants to Stop Weeds – 7 Beautiful Varieties That Crowd Out Unwanted Growth
Forget endless weeding, and prevent them from taking over the natural way
Ground cover plants do more than fill gaps in borders – many are highly effective at suppressing weeds, helping to keep your yard looking tidy with less effort. By forming a dense carpet of foliage, these low-growing plants cover bare soil, reducing opportunities for weed seeds to germinate and establish.
As well as providing attractive foliage and flowers, the best ground cover plants act as a living mulch, blocking light from reaching the soil and crowding out unwanted growth. While this green covering is attractive, these are some of the best plants to stop weeds, and so are more than just an aesthetic addition.
When planted correctly, they can create a thick, resilient layer that keeps maintenance to a minimum throughout the growing season. Here, I share seven of the best ground cover plants to stop weeds.
1. Lamb's Ear
If you are looking for a drought-tolerant ground cover to suppress weeds in sunny borders, gravel gardens or dry slopes, Lamb's ear (Stachys byzantina) is hard to beat.
This low-growing perennial forms a dense mat of soft, silver foliage that shades the soil and helps prevent weeds from establishing.
A member of the mint family, Lamiaceae, lamb's ear is native to Turkey, Armenia and Iran, making it well adapted to hot, dry conditions. It is often considered one of the best drought-tolerant ground cover plants for warm and southern regions, although it is surprisingly hardy and performs well across a wide range of climates.
'One of the best plants with silver foliage, lamb's ear is a great hardy species that can be grown in cooler regions, such as US hardiness zone 4, and warm regions, like US hardiness zone 9,' says Bert Bast, garden expert and owner of Bast Brothers Garden Center.
'I recommend planting on mass, creating a ground cover layer to keep weeds away,' Bert adds. 'What's more, the silver foliage will compliment any flowering perennials in your yard, working well with pink and purple blooms.'
Lamb's ear is particularly effective at the front of sunny borders, in Mediterranean-style plantings, rock gardens and gravel landscapes, where its spreading habit can soften edges while keeping unwanted plants under control.
Lamb's Ear starter plants are available from Amazon.
Bert Bast is a garden expert and owner of Bast Brothers Garden Centre. Established in 2014 and nestled in the heart of Mullica Hill, NJ, Bast Brothers Garden Center is a destination for all things garden.
2. Pachysandra
For evergreen ground cover plants, I do not think there is a better plant to grow than pachysandra. Growing best in US hardiness zone 5 and above, Japanese spurge, or Pachysandra terminalis, has an attractive serrated leaf that adds year-round greenery to any beds and borders.
I have grown pachysandra in many gardens across London, many of them in part-shade or full-shade. While this plant can be grown in sunny spots, I would advise against it, as the foliage can turn yellow in direct sunlight.
Pachysandra can be slow to establish, but within 1 to 2 years it will form an evergreen matting with a dense root network that makes life very difficult for opportunistic weeds.
While this plant is mostly known for its foliage, once established and happy, it can produce a bounty of small white flowers in spring. Pachysandra bare-root plants can be ordered online from Walmart.
3. Mind-Your-Own-Business
Another option for a ground cover plant to stop weeds is Soleirolia soleirolii, otherwise known as mind-your-own-business.
It works best when planted in between stepping stones or along the edge of pathways.
In cooler regions, mind-your-own-business will not survive frost and snow, so this plant is best suited to warmer and humid climates found in southern regions such as US hardiness zone 10. While this plant does prefer mild weather, it also grows best in shade, so using this plant in woodland gardens or darker spots in the yard is a good idea.
Mind-your-own-business plants are available to buy online from Amazon.
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4. Pittosporum
There are over 200 species of pittosporums, commonly referred to as cheesewoods.
While the plant family is large, several pittosporums have a low-growing habit, making them suitable for growing as ground cover plants to stop weeds.
Pittosporum tobira 'Nanum', as can be seen in the image above. This variety is ideal to grow as ground cover, with a bushy and compact habit that will fill borders.
Pittosporum are tender plants, able to withstand temperatures no less than -5°C/23°F. For this reason, these evergreen shrubs are best suited to mild regions, growing best in US hardiness zone 8 and above.
5. Phlomis
For a drought-tolerant ground cover that can thrive in hot, sunny borders, Phlomis russeliana, commonly known as Turkish sage or Jerusalem sage, is a reliable choice. One of the best Mediterranean plants to grow, it is hardy to US hardiness zone 7 and, in mild climates, retains its foliage year-round.
When planted in groups, the heart-shaped leaves form a dense ground cover that helps suppress weeds, before sending up tall spikes of yellow flowers in spring. It works particularly well in gravel gardens, Mediterranean-style planting and dry perennial borders.
To encourage self-seeding and natural spread, avoid deadheading after flowering. While the fading seedheads can look untidy for a short period, leaving them in place will help your phlomis colony expand over time.
Phlomis seeds are available to buy online from Amazon.
6. Bugleweed
Bugleweed is a highly attractive but subtle plant that can add a purple or bronze twist to backyard borders. Growing no taller than a few inches off the ground, bugleweed is often thought of as one of the best walkable ground cover plants, useful for those gardeners seeking grass and lawn alternatives.
What's more, purple flower spikes emerge in spring, known to attract bees, butterflies and moths. It can be grown almost anywhere, from US hardiness zone 3 to zone 10.
Bugleweed, Ajuga reptans, grows best in part shade. I have found that morning sunshine with afternoon shade is the best combination for this woodland plant, a common sight across much of the UK.
I have grown this vigorous plant in gardens across England, and while it has been manageable here, it is considered invasive in parts of North America, so it is best to check with your local municipality before planting.
Bugleweed 'chocolate chip' starter plants are available to buy from Amazon.
7. Bunchberry Dogwood
For a shade-loving ground cover that can help keep weeds under control, bunchberry dogwood (Cornus canadensis) is an excellent option. Native to North America and hardy in US hardiness zone 3-6, this woodland plant gradually spreads to form a dense carpet that shades the soil and reduces opportunities for unwanted plants to establish.
how to grow bunchberry dogwood is relatively straightforward, as it prefers a shady spot and moisture-retentive soil. 'Bunchberry dogwoods will quickly form a relatively dense carpet,' says Dr Ross Bayton, Director at Heronswood Garden in Kingston, Washington.
'Gardeners should be advised that bunchberry dogwoods are deciduous plants, losing their foliage in the fall,' Ross adds. 'In spring, each low growing stem produces a large white-bracted flower, before red berries emerge later in the growing season.'
While not overly vigorous, bunchberry dogwood slowly expands through rhizomatous roots, thickening its weed-suppressing cover year after year. It is particularly useful beneath trees, along woodland paths and in shaded borders where grass and many other ground covers struggle.
London-born botanist and gardener Dr Ross Bayton gained his PhD at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, studying the classification of tropical palms. He’s the author of several books on horticulture. He is now the director of the world-renowned Heronswood Garden in Kingston, Washington, and is developing a 5-acre garden at home in nearby Bremerton.
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Incorporating these weed-suppressing ground cover plants in your borders is a surefire way to keep unwanted plants out of the yard.
What's more, many of these options have striking foliage and flowers, adding color to those challenging areas under established shrubs and trees.
For more low-growing planting, see our guide on how to grow ground cover roses, for romantic blooms in your borders this year.
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