Whereas in style floor covers equivalent to thyme, dymondia, child’s tears and ice plant have their well-earned locations on this planet of low-spreading evergreen vegetation, do you know that there are a selection of fantastic California native floor covers able to plug into quite a lot of conditions?
Not solely do these choices show all of the virtues of the above floor covers – tenacious, drought tolerant, wonderful at weed suppression – however they add their very own distinctive advantages as nicely. Many entice pollinators of 1 variety or one other; some are edible or medicinal; and some even produce winter seed for songbirds. Listed below are a handful of my favourite choices to contemplate on your Bay Space backyard. In addition they trace on the variety and great thing about low-growing native vegetation, and lots of could be discovered at your native nursery.
Low growers for pollinators or birds
California buckwheats (Eriogonum) are one of many perfect low-growing vegetation to draw and nourish pollinators and songbirds in your backyard. The foliage on these hardy and drought-tolerant perennials stays low (3-6 inches), with flowers floating above on elongated stems. Be it the pink flowering E. grande rubescens, the yellow blooming E. crocatum or E. umbellatum, or the white flowering E. latifolium, the flowers are a preferred nectar supply for bees, butterflies and hummingbirds. Depart the flowers on the plant with a view to produce seed for native songbirds. These buckwheats love the solar and need good drainage.
Yerba buena (Satureja douglasii) is a typical herb belonging to the savory household. Its sweetly aromatic leaves are in style in salads or as tea, however its white tubular flowers are additionally a favourite of hummers. This herb likes shade, a bit of normal water and is simple to develop. It’s prolific, spreading out shortly, so no worries about harvesting a few of its leaves. Extra will develop again.
Self heal (Prunella vulgaris) is a low-growing herb that extra folks ought to have of their gardens. It’s so sturdy that when the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco was redesigned with a dwelling roof, this herb was a featured plant. That roof receives no synthetic moisture, displaying how powerful this purple flowering herb is. Bees and hummers love the flowers, and the leaves have been utilized by native folks to deal with pores and skin points.
Coyote mint (Monardella) is without doubt one of the best-kept secrets and techniques within the worlds of each aromatic herbs and floor covers. Species equivalent to M. villosa, M. odoratissima and M. macrantha provide extremely aromatic leaves and wonderful mild purple flowers which might be a magnet for bees and butterflies. They’re a bit taller than a few of the different ground-hugging vegetation talked about right here – usually 8-15 inches – however they do provide lots of the identical virtues (erosion management and weed prevention).
Floor covers as a design ingredient
We generally view floor covers as solely utilitarian vegetation however they’ll add their very own magnificence to any backyard. California fuchsia (Epilobium) is exhibit A on this regard, displaying silvery foliage and extremely ornamental tubular flowers in shades of crimson, pink or coral. Ranging in peak from 4-18 inches, this principally evergreen spreading perennial is surprisingly drought tolerant, needing nearly no summer time water. The nectar-rich flowers are a chief vacation spot for hummingbirds. Much less identified however simply as stunning is the woolly sunflower (Eriophyllum lanatum ‘Siskiyou’), a low-spreading native with cheerful 2-inch daisy-like flowers. It’s each a butterfly magnet and engaging but powerful buyer, with its lobed, silver foliage.
Blue-eyed grass (Sisyrinchium species) looks like an odd frequent title till you see this native’s purple or bluish-purple flowers, every with a golden eye in its heart. Finest planted within the fall, this clump-forming grass tops out at 8 inches and spreads to 12 inches vast. A bit extra helpful as an ornamental floor cowl, it’s nonetheless one of many loveliest of our native low-growers.
Want a floor cowl for shade? Native coral bells species (Heuchera) are a beautiful alternative. Of the lower-growing varieties, H. micrantha and H. sanguinea provide the best variety of varieties. Sporting inexperienced scalloped leaves, these sturdy evergreens create 6-inch-by-15-inch clumps with sprays of tiny white, pink or crimson flowers rising above the foliage on wiry stems.
Succulent floor covers equivalent to numerous ice vegetation are acquainted to many a gardener, however do you know that there’s a native stonecrop amongst succulent choices? Sedum spathulifolium purpureum or Cape Blanco are ground-hugging, drought-tolerant and extremely ornamental. Purple stonecrop options rosettes of tiny leaves which have a reddish-purple forged whereas Cape Blanco’s rosettes are fully silver. Each produce yellow flowers sought out by butterflies. These succulents love the solar and fast-draining soil.
Spreading vegetation for weed management
To regulate weeds, a plant that fills in densely, making it tough for weeds to push up, is so as. 4 natives get the job completed, and our native strawberry (Fragaria vesca) is considered one of them. This ground-hugging perennial creates a dense mat of feathery inexperienced leaves, including small edible fruits in the summertime. It prefers solar however can tolerate a little bit of shade. Likewise, our native sage (Salvia sonomensis) stays very low (1-2 inches) and spreads out to ultimately cowl an space of 6-10 ft. Sturdy and drought tolerant, it appreciates a little bit of reduction from inside noon solar. Pale purple flowers dot the plant within the fall, attracting hummingbirds.
There are a number of low-growing manzanitas (Arctostaphylos), however the most effective is A. uva-ursi. Staying very low, it creates a thick mat of small, darkish inexperienced leaves that slowly unfold to five ft vast. This floor cowl is so powerful which you can stroll on it, a top quality shared by all 4 entries right here. Lastly, Lippia repens is a really low and very dense floor cowl that can be utilized as a garden substitute. It types a inexperienced carpet that ultimately sprouts little white-with-purple-centers blooms in summer time.
Earl Nickel is an Oakland nurseryman and freelance author. E-mail: meals@sfchronicle.com
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