Blue fescue
Often used in dry landscaping, the serene, blue-grey leaves of blue fescue (Festuca mina glauca) accent taller, brighter perennials. Only 17 to 25 centimeters high, blue fescue develops into a tufted, mounding plant that usually displays moderate growth, expanding from individual plants that may each get to 30 or more centimeters wide. During the summer months, brownish, rather bland flowers appear on little spikes. Blue fescue markedly prefers sun, but it will also tolerate light shade. To keep it looking its best, just water it occasionally.
Silver brocade artemisia
My 15 centimetre-high artemisia (Artemisia stelleriana) started when a dinner guest gave me a home-grown flower bouquet made up of stems in grey Out of curiosity, when the flowers faded I tucked the stems in a glass of water on a sunny bathroom windowsill and forgot about them. Three weeks later, the stems developed roots. The plant went into the sunny, dry spot where just about everything had refused to grow because of concrete-reflected heat. The artemisia thrived. I clipped a few stems, rooted them in water, and placed them into more tough, small areas, such as inside an ancient lorry type that has been transformed into a raised bed. To use artemisia as groundcover, you must place each plant about 25 centimeters apart. Expect artemisia to reach about 38 centimeters wide. This evergreen perennial has silvery-grey leaves about 5 to 10 centimeters long.
Beach covers
FORTUNATELY FOR THOSE AT THE SEASHORE, a good number of ground-cover plants work nicely in this environment. Try some of the following plants if your garden gets beach winds and salt sprays.
Cape weed
I use cape weed (Arctotheca calendula) in a really hot, dry side area where nothing else wants to tolerate the living conditions. The only problem is it keeps trying to escape into an area with soil less like hardened concrete. It's aggressive enough to require vigilance, but then, that's exactly what you may need. Cape weed can grow to about 20 centimeters tall, but will hug the ground in dry situations. It can tolerate temperatures as low as —4° C and is quite useful on neglected slopes and for erosion control. If you plant it in any form of shade, it will grow with great determination towards sunlight. Cape weed's flowers.
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