Creeping thyme makes a great ground cover

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Creeping thyme is a low growing thyme that gets only five to eight inches high and spreads as much as eighteen inches. It can be used in a variety of places. I first saw it when I was on retreat. There was a patio area covered with large sandstones and the creeping thyme was growing in the spaces between the rocks, making a green border around each stone. I am planning to use it in the patio area in back of the house in the same way.

A creeping thyme ground cover will be completely covered in 1/4-inch bells of carmine-pink for months on end. Butterflies love it. The foliage of creeping thyme is attractive even when not in bloom, too, with dark green, slightly hairy leaves. And because it's a long-lived perennial ground cover is hardy just about everywhere in the U.S., you can expect years of beauty from this trouble-free groundcover!

Creeping thyme can be used in rock gardens, walls, bare spots in sunny beds and borders, and just about anywhere that needs some quick, permanent coverage. Creeping thyme tolerates dry soil and needs little care after it is established. It self-sows readily, dropping it seeds after flowering season is over and then this new seed sprouts the next spring keep a robust stand of creeping thyme ground cover thriving. If you can't find plugs of it in a nursery, you can plant seeds which are easy to grow.

At Creeping Thyme

May 9, 2011

Creeping thyme makes a great ground cover