9 Ground Cover Plants to Add Charm to Your UK Garden

Posted on 17/05/2025

9 Ground Cover Plants to Add Charm to Your UK Garden

Ground cover plants are a wonderful way to add a lush, beautiful layer to your garden, reducing weeds, preventing soil erosion, and enhancing biodiversity. Particularly in the UK, with its varied climate--from the wet and windy north to the milder south--selecting the right ground cover plants for your garden is essential. In this article, we delve into nine fabulous options that are both hardy and charming for UK gardens.

1. Creeping Thyme (Thymus serpyllum)

Creeping Thyme is a low-growing perennial that produces delightful, aromatic foliage. Ideal for filling in gaps between stepping stones, Creeping Thyme thrives in sunny spots and well-drained soil. Its beautiful purple blooms appear in summer, providing a feast for bees and adding a pop of color to your garden.

• Height: 10-15 cm
• Spread: 30-45 cm
• Soil: Well-drained, sandy, rocky
• Sun: Full sun

2. Bugleweed (Ajuga reptans)

Known for its quick adaptability, Bugleweed offers vibrant green to burgundy foliage with stunning blue flowers in the spring. This plant grows well in a variety of conditions, making it a versatile choice for UK gardens. Its tendency to form dense mats helps suppress weeds naturally.

• Height: 10-20 cm
• Spread: 60-90 cm
• Soil: Moist, well-drained
• Sun: Full sun to partial shade

Benefits of Using Ground Cover Plants

By using ground cover plants like Bugleweed, you not only enhance the aesthetic appeal of your garden but also promote a healthy ecosystem. These plants often provide habitats for various beneficial insects and remain evergreen in many cases, offering year-round interest.

3. Sweet Woodruff (Galium odoratum)

Sweet Woodruff is a fragrant plant that thrives in shaded areas, making it perfect for planting under trees and shrubs. Its glossy leaves and star-shaped white flowers provide a soft texture and a charming woodland feel to the garden. Additionally, it's known for naturalizing easily.

• Height: 10-25 cm
• Spread: 30-60 cm
• Soil: Moist, well-drained
• Sun: Partial shade to full shade

4. Saxifrage (Saxifraga x urbium)

Saxifrage, also known as London Pride, exhibits dense rosettes of evergreen leaves and produces delicate sprays of pinkish-white flowers. This plant is exceptionally tolerant to cold and shade, making it a reliable choice for many UK areas, particularly rock gardens or walls.

• Height: 15-20 cm
• Spread: 35-40 cm
• Soil: Poor to moderately fertile, well-drained
• Sun: Full to partial shade

5. Lesser Periwinkle (Vinca minor)

Lesser Periwinkle is a hardy evergreen ground cover that produces violet-blue flowers all summer long. This vigorous plant is excellent for erosion control on slopes and banks. It prefers moist, rich soil and partial shade but can adapt to various conditions, making it a strong warrior against weeds.

• Height: 10-15 cm
• Spread: 60-90 cm
• Soil: Well-drained, adaptable
• Sun: Partial shade to full shade

6. Mind-your-own-business (Soleirolia soleirolii)

This intriguingly named plant, also known as Baby's Tears, offers a lush carpet of rounded leaves that thrive in damp, shaded environments. It creates a soft, green cushion effect that is particularly striking in potted plant displays or rockeries.

• Height: 5-10 cm
• Spread: Unlimited, can become invasive
• Soil: Moist, well-drained
• Sun: Full shade

How to Plant and Maintain Ground Cover Plants

When planting ground covers, proper spacing is essential to encourage their natural spread. Regular pruning will help promote healthy growth and prevent them from becoming invasive. For moist-loving plants, ensure adequate irrigation during dry months.

7. Bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi)

Bearberry is a low-growing, creeping evergreen shrub that thrives in poor, dry soils. Its glossy leaves turn red in autumn, while its pinkish-white flowers transform into red berries in the fall, making it an attractive choice year-round.

• Height: 5-10 cm
• Spread: 60-120 cm
• Soil: Poor, sandy, well-drained
• Sun: Full sun

8. Wall Germander (Teucrium chamaedrys)

This evergreen perennial features small, glossy leaves and spikes of pink or purple flowers. Wall Germander is an excellent choice for sunny borders or herb gardens due to its tolerance of drought and poor soil conditions. It's perfect for creating a low hedge or edging.

• Height: 25-30 cm
• Spread: 45 cm
• Soil: Well-drained, dry to medium moisture
• Sun: Full sun

9. Heather (Calluna vulgaris)

Heather is renowned for its vibrant blooms and foliage that can vary from green to gold to red. It thrives in acidic soils of rock gardens and adds year-round color with its long-lasting flowers and foliage interest, making it a garden favorite throughout the UK.

• Height: 30-50 cm
• Spread: 40-60 cm
• Soil: Acidic, sandy, peaty
• Sun: Full sun to partial shade

The Final Thought

Incorporating ground cover plants into your UK garden is an effective way to reduce maintenance while enhancing beauty and biodiversity. Whether you're looking for something fragrant, colorful, or simply practical, these nine ground covers offer a spectrum of options. Experimenting with different textures, colors, and types can create a garden that is not only charming but also ecologically sound.