Golden Acre Home & Garden Centre's Plant Library

Other Names:  Variegated Creeping Charlie, Nepeta variegata

Description:

An aggressive, dense creeper of small green and white variegated leaves on trailing stems; small violet-blue flowers in spring; excellent for hanging baskets and lawn replacement; keep clear of beds and borders as it tends to take over

Ornamental Features

Variegated Ground Ivy has masses of beautiful spikes of blue flowers rising above the foliage from mid to late spring, which are most effective when planted in groupings. Its round leaves remain bluish-green in colour with showy white variegation throughout the year.

Landscape Attributes

Variegated Ground Ivy is an herbaceous evergreen perennial with a ground-hugging habit of growth. Its medium texture blends into the garden, but can always be balanced by a couple of finer or coarser plants for an effective composition.

This plant will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and is best cleaned up in early spring before it resumes active growth for the season. It is a good choice for attracting bees and butterflies to your yard, but is not particularly attractive to deer who tend to leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. Gardeners should be aware of the following characteristic(s) that may warrant special consideration;

• Spreading

Variegated Ground Ivy is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• Groundcover
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Variegated Ground Ivy will grow to be only 2 inches tall at maturity extending to 3 inches tall with the flowers, with a spread of 30 inches. Its foliage tends to remain low and dense right to the ground. It grows at a medium rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 10 years. As an evegreen perennial, this plant will typically keep its form and foliage year-round.

This plant does best in full sun to partial shade. It prefers to grow in average to moist conditions, and shouldn't be allowed to dry out. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America. It can be propagated by division; however, as a cultivated variety, be aware that it may be subject to certain restrictions or prohibitions on propagation.

Variegated Ground Ivy is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. Because of its spreading habit of growth, it is ideally suited for use as a 'spiller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the edges where it can spill gracefully over the pot. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden. Be aware that in our climate, most plants cannot be expected to survive the winter if left in containers outdoors, and this plant is no exception. Contact our experts for more information on how to protect it over the winter months.