Epimedium/Barrenwort
Plants that can take dry shade are few and far between, and epimedium is one of the best. It spreads and fills out enough to function as a groundcover, though not by bullying out other plants. Native to parts of Asia and Europe.
Details
- Flower early spring in shades of yellow, white, red, pink, purple, etc. Then the foliage emerges and looks great into autumn. Some even have good fall color.
- Sources indicate it likes rich soil, so I might just try adding compost to mine to increase their modest growth rate.
- Okay with full shade, even dry shade, or, where summers are cool, full sun.
Care
- For their first year, keep the soil moist and use mulch or compost. After that, they're quite drought-tolerant.
- Disease- and pest-free.
- By early spring, they're "unsightly" and should be cut down before their early spring flowers appear.
Good Information in Print
- The Well Tended Perennial Garden
by Tracy DiSabato-Aust is the best-selling book on how to make your perennials healthier and better-looking. - Encyclopedia of Perennials
by Graham Rice is exhaustive and an outstanding general resource on the subject. - The Complete Flower Gardener
by Cutler and Ellis is another source I consult regularly.
Location Matters
My test garden is in the Washington, D.C. area, Zone 7A. If you have comments about this plant you'd like to see included here, send 'em along.