We live in New Westminster and have an approximately 6 foot slope from the sidewalk to our front yard. This area is quite wide - almost the whole width of our property. It was previously planted with junipers which we have taken out. But we don't know what kind of ground cover to plant on the slope. We are looking for something low maintenance, that doesn't grow too tall - about a foot?, that looks attractive all year and isn't too expensive. Does anyone have any ideas? And if so - where can you purchase these plants? Thanks for your help.
consider: Dutch white clover (available in seed), blue star creeper, corsican mint, vancouver gold broom, cotoneaster dammeri and pachysandra. try here for a good reference: http://www.jeeperscreepers.info/index.html and: http://www.stepables.com/
The Invasive Plant Council of British Columbia notes that some forms of periwinkle are invasive (see their Horticulture Brochure (PDF)
Cotoneaster! Lovely bushy-type groundcover, not much more than 12" high, good spreader, lovely berries later in the year (birds love em!). Hardy plant, will withstand freezing. Also very good on a slope, stops soil erosion. It's not very invasive either. It's an evergreen, so your garden always looks good.
How about a prostrate rosemary? I've planted it before on a small slope in Seattle. It's evergreen, pretty little blue flowers almost constantly & spreads happily, once established, and you can cook with it! The prostrate forms don't get very tall... 6 - 12 inches if I recall correctly. I am about the plant it again on a slope by the street, however this time in Virginia ... I'll be amazed if it does as well here as it did in Seattle. I think you'll have a lot better chance of it working for you in Vancouver than I do in Virginia!
I had some creeping rosemary this last summer and I absolutely loved it.(almost more than the upright!) I tryed protecting it (in zone 7) with hay bails facing northeast with the plant on the inside of the "L" it made and covered it lightly with stray stems from the bails. It would have worked except the hay stems compacted and grew mold, and ,as if that wasn't enough, we had an unseasonably cold week or two that did the rosemary in. off my soap box now. I think that creeping rosemary would be a great addition to your garden.
Tenderness is typical for the common cultivar of creeping rosemary. And if you really are in Zone 7 (zip code hardiness zone finders I've tried put me wrongly in Zone 7), you are in a colder area than most western Washingtonians. You might have trouble with most rosemary cultivars. http://www.growit.com/bin/USDAZoneMaps.exe?MyState=WA
Cotoneaster dammeri 'Lowfast' (Bearberry Cotoneaster) - This is an evergreen groundcover that grows only 1 foot tall and spreads to about 12 feet by trailing stems, which root as they touch the ground. White flowers in the spring are followed by bright red berries. Grows in full sun or part shade. Drought tolerant. It is hardy to -10 to -20 degrees F (USDA Zone 5). It is very similar in appearance to C. dammeri 'Coral Beauty', however this selection grows a little taller and spreads wider. We've grown 'Lowfast' on a shady slope and it is great, no pests or diseases and doesn't need watering at all once established. It is widely available. Be sure to pull weeds and grass out till it gets established but otherwise it is low maintenance and decorative year round. Even the leaves are a very shiny green that catches the light. It is very easy to prune if you want to encourage it to be low and bushy.
Why doesn't anyone mention arctostaphylos? I have quite a bit and it doesn't take much care, no freeze problem but there is a gall growth some years. I just pulled up about 200 sf of a very old (and ugly) planting and am looking for something different--but not just a bunch of new problems. Maybe it's another "out of the fire and into...? grif
I am with Erica, periwinkle would be my choice as one of the ground covers in an area, which has previously been occupied by junipers. They might well be invasive if left unchecked, as Daniel Mosquin pointed out, but in many years of cultivating them I found, that their spread can easily be controlled by trimming them back with with one of these $6.- to 8.- hand lawn sheers, when they are trying to grow beyond their assigned territory. They do not have any fly seeds, so they cannot bridge any gaps larger than the extend of unrooted runners (runners, which do not have access to a a growing medium, such as those, which climb up trees or fences as well as cross paved walks). My longest are about 4 feet. Depending on location an available sun light, there are of course dozens if not hundreds of ground covers available, which might fit the bill. One big advantage of some ground covers is that they spread fast and therefore provide early weed control. :) One big disadvantage of the same ground covers is, that they spread fast and have to be contained. :(
What about a few different types of groundcover. I was just looking at Trilliums on another website. Maybe you could try some ornamental grasses as well.
Just curious as to why you took out the junipers -- were they the very low type? I have seen low "carpet" junipers in my local nursery and I like them, but is there something undesirable about them? I am not speaking of the bigger versions which are more shrublike than groundcovers. Notwithstanding my fascination with small groundcovers, I am equally tempted by the carpeting shrubs such as some cotoneasters and junipers...
