Relentless Gardener

Homeowners are starting to remove sections of their lawns. The cost of water is rising along with electricity. Grass is the highest maintenance of any crop. There are xeric plants that are low maintenance and need little to no care once they are established.

Low shrubs or groundcovers can replace some of the lawn area. Doing this in areas such as along the curb can save you from watering a section that gets extremely hot and dries out faster. Here are some suggestions below:

1) Mock Bearberry manzanita, Arctostaphylos x coloradensis, is hardy in zone 4b through 8 and grows 10-24 inches tall by 36-60 inches wide. It prefers afternoon shade. It grows in sandy or loam soil which means it needs good drainage. It is a broadleaf evergreen that produces waxy, urn-shaped, white flowers that produce small red berries on established plants. It does well in drought. Never prune unless it has damaged branches.

2) Panchito manzanita, Arctostaphylos x coloradensis 'Panchito', broadleaf evergreen hybrid with the same description as above except for having lovely pink, small, heather-like flowers hanging in small clusters from the branches, lasting for nearly six weeks.

3) Chieftain manzanita, Arctostaphylos x coloradensis ‘Chieftain' this broadleaf evergreen is the largest and most vigorous of all the Plant Select introductions with white flowers tinged with pink. It grows in zones five through eight and grows one to two feet by five to six feet. All the above information on Mock and Panchito also applies to Chieftain Manzanita.

Low-growing perennials are considered groundcovers. Placing them in large groups can showcase your landscape. Placing them closer together can help block out the sunlight between each and cut down on weeds. Here are some suggestions that work well in our area:

1) Gold on Blue prairie zinnia — Zinnia grandiflora 'Gold on Blue' is a yellow flowering plant that grows eight to 10 inches tall by 18+ inches wide. It grows in zones four through eight. It does well in full sun and dry sandy, loam, and clay soil. Plant in the spring. And each spring you can prune to clean out the dead.

2) Summer Frost Pink Candy - Stachys lavandulifolia 'P020S' is a pink flowering herbaceous perennial that blooms in late spring and grows eight to 10 inches tall by 12-18 inches wide. It grows in zones five through nine. It grows well in loam or sandy soil in full sun. This is a great plant for pollinators.

3) EVERSILVER™ creeping germander — Teucrium 'Harlequin's Silver' is a perennial with silver foliage and purple flowers in May and June. It grows four to six inches tall by one to two feet wide. It grows in zones five through 10 in alkaline well-drained soil such as sandy and gravel soils. Trim out dead foliage in the spring.

Interested in more choices, then go to https://plantselect.org/plants/our-plants/. Want more choices? Then go to this link: https://extension.colostate.edu/topic-areas/yard-garden/ground-cover-plants-7-400/.