perenniel under a tree ??

Question

I want to plant a perenniel around the base of a big maple tree. Would like a low growing, colorful ground cover.any ideas ???. also do you know of any sites where they show photos and not just text about plants ?

Answer 1

"Lamium"also called dead nettle it is a low growing ground cover for shade. There are different varieties available to give you different color variations. But basically it is a variegated leaf plant. I have two different kinds one is Beacon Silver and it is light green with "silver" markings and the other is.... shoot Lucy something but it has slightly brighter green with yellowish markings and side by side they are quite different. They have small purple flowers blooming throughout summer and fall. There is a perennial Pansy and if you just punch in plant catalog on a search engine you should be able to check out "burpee" and other catalogs for ideas. Most have something for you to narrow your search down by shade and requirements. Wish I could download photo of my shade garden it is ever so colorful with hardly a flower in sight! Different Hosta's,Ferns, Elephant Ears, Caladiums, Coleus its a sight to be seen!
My Aunt has a well manicured look underneath her maple trees and all it is is white rocks around the base of the tree with about a 3 ft radius and Hosta's at the edge of the rocks. ( they have hostas in many different varieties some small with variegated leaves to some very large with like chartreuse yellow looking leaves to ones that are practically blue. Let your imagination run wild! Just take steps to keep weeds out in the first place and things will go smoothly! Go heavy on the mulch and maybe put down landscape fabric before planting or try Preen (a product that stops weed seeds)(all seeds from germinating) then cover with wood chips or rocks or some sort of mulch (Heavily) Goodluck!
Master Gardener MSU Extension

Answer 2

* Howdy!

My favorite house (YEARS ago) had lots of big shade trees in the front yard and the best perennial we had was PACHYSANDRA (also known as Japanese Spurge). It spreads quickly and always stays green. Even in the winter we had a thick carpet of green and it always looked nice. In May and also, if I recall correctly, in the fall, it sprouted tiny little white flowers on the end of stubby little stalks.

Another nice plant that likes shady conditions and seems to do well under trees is HOSTA. That dies down in the late fall, but is one of the first things to pop up again in the spring. You can try the variegated type with green and white striped leaves, but it's been my experience that when you take a variegated variety and put it in a shady area, the leaves turn all green and the white stripes disappear! There are some really awesome HOSTAS with HUGE leaves that look very "jungle-y" and cool.

This time of the year, Autumn, is a good time to get both plants in, too. I've found both plants, at lower prices, in the garden centers and Home Depot at this time of the year.

Both plants are very hardy and tough. A neighbor once mowed down the 350 Pachysandra plants I'd spend all weekend putting in the previous Memorial Day because he thought they were poision ivy! They came back quickly, very thick, green and healthy. He actually did them a favor by cutting them back in their second year.

Try to "google" hosta and see what you come up with. Same with PACHYSANDRA.

A good site that shows pictures is: "www.burpee.com".

Have fun with your research and planting. Remember--"green side up"!

Answer 3

There are some great perennials that you could plant under your tree. My favourites for this spot would be hellebores, bears breeches (acanthus mollis), shade loving iris's eg iris confusa, ajugas (flowers,autumn tints, and different coloured leaves), violets (pink, blue, white, and double) and lamiums and hosta's are certainly lovely. How about some bulbs for spring also mixed in eg snowflakes, lily of the valley, solomons seal.

I find the BBC Gardening site in England excellent, also the Better Homes & Garden site in America.

If you could talk to a good perennial specialist nursery or even check out their mail order sites this would help you also for suggestions. Much will depend on the moisure content of the soil under the tree.

Answer 4

Hostas Lillies (not a ground cover but looks awesome)
Verigated Ivy
PACHYSANDRA
Verigated Monkey Grass
Regular Monkey Grass
MONDO Grass etc etc...
not too many "colorful" perennials will grow well in complete shade ;-(

Answer 5

I have lots of shady areas in my yard and I basically just plant different types of hosta. Matienance free. The only thing I do divide up the bigger plants and then just plant them elsewhere in the yard since they do tend to get bigger each year.

Answer 6

You can get a multitude of colors with coleus if you want a primarily foliage plant. Begonias are good for a flowering plant--they come in most colors but the blues.

Answer 7

Varigated vinca, I have some under a large shade tree. It has beautiful purple flowers in the sprimg.

Answer 8

I don't think this is a good idea. Perennials need moderate sunlight, under a tree is almost no sunlight. It will die.