How Many Plants You Need For Your Groundcover

What's a groundcover?

Any plant that grows low, in practice. Climbers like ivy and pandorea can be grown as groundcovers, spreading out rather than up.

Some groundcovers grow flat to the ground, some are almost knee-high; some stay neat and rounded, some spread sideways to form a web or a fan.

They are often low maintenance workhorses that can give you an impressive finished result with little effort.

Groundcovers are fantastic plants for Australian gardens

they keep valuable topsoil in place
cool the roots of taller plants
reduce water evaporation and runoff
smother weeds
bind banks and slopes together
cover large areas fast
create striking displays
shelter small wildlife

Groundcover plants can get overlooked as our attention is grabbed by showy flowers and imposing trees; which is a pity.

Groundcovers look good all year round; don't need frequent mowing or pruning; grow to a predictable height; and look after themselves for most of the year. Many have bright leaves or flowers too!

How many plants do you need for your groundcover planting?

Take a look at the width of a mature plant (you'll find this on every product page in the description).
If you are patient, plant your plants this far apart from each other
That's how far apart you need to space the plants.
Plant in an offset pattern like the five-spots on a dice - fun fact, this is called a 'quincunx'
For faster coverage, plant them half that distance apart, and they will knit together quicker.
You might need to remove a few later down the line if the plants become too congested.

TIP 1 : ORDER SPARES
It's always a good idea to order some extras in case one or two get nibbled by wildlife, or are planted in a poor patch of soil. That way you know you've got exactly the same plant as a replacement.

TIP 2 : PREP WELL
Dig the soil over to loosen it; and enrich with compost (if you are planting non-native plants), so your plants get the best start in life.

TIP 3 : ALLOW FOR GROWTH
Spreading groundcovers don't grow in perfect circles, so you might need to add in extras after the first planting has established, to close any gaps.