Covering Ground

Ground covers are a pretty and practical way to bring diversity, elegance, and durability to open sweeps of lawn. Give your landscape a vibrant new palette that is both sustainable and low-maintenance through plantings of herbs, shrubs, mosses, and more. Barbara W. Ellis provides a variety of full-color lawn designs and professional planting advice to get you started. You ll be amazed as your ordinary lawn transforms into a striking display of color and texture.

“eoeBarbara W. Ellis transforms yards into flowering pieces of arteoffering low-maintenance schemes, plant combinations, and in-depth advice on nurturing verdant landscapes.e Home Magazine eoe Covering Ground will inspire with its wonderful possibilities for creating eye-catching color and texture in unexpected places. Ellis has the answers to the toughest garden situationsee East Coast Gardener eoeIf youe(tm)re making the decision to get rid of some water-thirsty lawn, heree(tm)s help. Here are plenty of alternatives, as simple or as show as you want, for sun or shade, around pavers, along edges, fragrant or not, fast- or slow-growing, high- or low-maintenance.e St. Petersburg Times eoeThere's life beyond lawn grass, and even beyond English ivy and pachysandra. You'll find lots of good ideas in Covering Ground .e Chicago Tribune eoeBarbara Ellis e elevates utilitarian ground cover plants to garden stars.e McClatchy News Service”

"Barbara W. Ellis transforms yards into flowering pieces of art...offering low-maintenance schemes, plant combinations, and in-depth advice on nurturing verdant landscapes."

Home Magazine

"Covering Ground will inspire with its wonderful possibilities for creating eye-catching color and texture in unexpected places. Ellis has the answers to the toughest garden situations..."

East Coast Gardener

"If you're making the decision to get rid of some water-thirsty lawn, here's help. Here are plenty of alternatives, as simple or as show as you want, for sun or shade, around pavers, along edges, fragrant or not, fast- or slow-growing, high- or low-maintenance."

St. Petersburg Times

"There's life beyond lawn grass, and even beyond English ivy and pachysandra. You'll find lots of good ideas in Covering Ground."

"Barbara Ellis ... elevates utilitarian ground cover plants to garden stars."

Barbara W. Ellis is a freelance writer, editor, and lifelong gardener. She is the author of many gardening books, including The Veggie Gardener s Answer Book, Deckscaping, Shady Retreats, and Covering Ground. She holds a B.S. in horticulture from the Ohio State University, Columbus, and a B.A. from Kenyon College. She has worked as managing editor at Rodale Press and as publications director for the American Horticultural Society and is affiliated with the Hardy Plant Society Mid-Atlantic Group, the Garden Writers Association, and the Perennial Plant Association. She lives and gardens in Maryland, where she and her husband live in a renovated green home with an assortment of rescued dogs, cats, and parrots. Her garden, which is managed organically and designed to be wildlife-friendly, features a wide range of ornamentals, herbs, and edibles for both sun and shade.

REIMAGINE the Possibilities for Covering Your Ground REPLACE GRASS on hard-to-mow slopesCONNECT scattered flower beds, trees, and shrubsCONTROL erosion along stream banksCARPET the patches between stepping stonesSTABILIZE boggy areasEDGE walkways, curbs, and drivewaysCREATE natural alternatives to traditional lawnsADD A SPLASH OF COLOR anywhere you need it!

Open sweeps of lawn are a large part of most home landscapes, but imagine turning those stretches of lawn into striking swathes of beautifully planted ground covers. Barbara W. Ellis explores hundreds of wonderful possibilities in her new guide, helping readers create eyecatching splashes of color and texture in unexpected places. More than just broad expanses of a single plant, ground covers can bring a fresh look to dozens of landscaping challenges and opportunities. Flowering plants, herbs, mosses, groundhugging shrubs, and heathers, planted singly or in creative combinations, can cover all sorts of ground situations with unexpected drama and add an elegant, professional look to otherwise dull and ordinary areas. Additionally, hardscape lawn alternatives such as bluestone, crushed gravel, brick, or shredded bark mulch introduce pathways and help create defined borders. Working with the theory that ground covers should be hardworking as well as beautiful, Part One, Rolling Out the Carpet, inspires readers with low-maintenance, creative ideas. Simplify lawn mowing by filling in awkward corners with easy-to-care-for colorful plants. Edge walkways to keep them neat and attractive. Use broad drifts to control erosion along streams. Ground covers can fit anywhere. Part Two, Landscaping with Ground Covers, matches plants to specific site requirements. Looking for herbs hardy enough to thrive between stepping stones? Shrubby plants that tolerate full sun? Native ferns for a woodland floor or moss gardens for acid shade? Ellis has all the answers and the experience to combine appropriate plants in stunning combinations. Part Three includes in-depth how-to for planting, growing, and propagating, with special emphasis on site preparation, plant selection, and weed control. From single-plant drifts to unexpected plant combinations and new uses for natural hardscaping, ground covers are an exciting, low maintenance alternative to traditional lawns.

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