The Vibrant Yellow Ground Cover That'll Thrive In Sun Or Shade

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It's quite easy for ground cover plants to get overlooked with all the gardening choices available. Ground covers offer a lot of benefits to your garden, including filling in spaces where other plants don't grow well, stabilizing the soil, suppressing weed growth, making everything look well out together. In most cases, ground cover is better than mulch in your flower beds and provides a host of benefits to the flowers you plant them around not to mention creating more visual appeal in your flower beds. If you're looking for a fast-growing ground cover, consider the 'Brigadoon' cultivar of St. John's wort (Hypericum calycinum). This bright yellow, hardy ground cover not only grows fast, but it thrives in both sun and shade — making it a great choice for any spot in your garden.

This cheery plant boasts yellow-green oval leaves and bright yellow flowers that add a shock of color wherever you plant them. 'Brigadoon' blooms in the early to mid-summer, producing flowers that are 2 to 3 inches in diameter. They typically grow to 12 to 18 inches high and can spread to a width of 24 inches. The best time to plant 'Brigadoon' is in late summer or fall. Follow our top tips for successfully planting ground cover and space the plants about 18 inches apart so that they have plenty of room to grow.

This brightly colored, low-maintenance plant thrives in U.S. Hardiness Zones 5 through 8, so if you have determined your plant hardiness zone you can check if you are within the recommended planting areas. When choosing the best place to put 'Brigadoon,' look for a spot with at least six to eight hours of sun each day. Although it can handle shady areas as well, morning sun and afternoon shade is best.

Soil needs are easy to meet, and depends on the sunlight the 'Brigadoon' is receiving. If your 'Brigadoon' plants are getting full sun, they thrive in well-draining, sandy soils. If you have it in shadier areas, keep in mind that it will bloom a little less. In warmer climates, it is evergreen all year long but it will die back in colder climates in the winter and come back in the spring. This is one of the enjoyable benefits of perennials. 

While 'Brigadoon' is drought-tolerant once established, it needs regular moisture in its first year, and can tolerate average levels of moisture — though it hates standing water. If you don't get regular rain, just keep the soil damp. Fertilizing and pruning are also easy when it comes to 'Brigadoon'. Use a balanced slow-release fertilizer like this GARDENWISE 10-10-10 All Purpose Food and apply lightly in early spring. In late winter or early spring before new growth appears, remove any decaying, dying wood — no more than one-third of the entire plant — to keep the plant shaped and growing nicely.