Some great ground covering is varigated vinca, it has both yellow and green leaves, not everyone has it but if you do find it you'll be very happy like the green variety it has a purple flower but what I really like about it is that is pretty when it's not flowering.

Best ground cover EVER!!! is Ajuga or Bugleweed, especially the "Chocolate Chip" variety. It's ever colorful unless the winter is unbelievably cold. It's green with purplish-blue, tiny flower spikes in the spring/summer, and green leaves with beautiful purple/brown (hence the chocolate name) shading in the fall/winter. It fills in well and you can take plugs from that which is already established. I even split the containers from the nursery and in a few months all the open area have ...»

GO NATIVE! They will be fine in (their natural) soil and look great. You can find so many native plants these days that are beautiful and do so well in a place they were meant to be. You will also bring back native birds, butterflies and a special eco system - all your own. We did it here in San Diego and are so happy we did.

Google Jim Scotts Garden (In Alabama) you will get plenty of ideas. If I was doing it (which we sort of are) I would use azaleas, hostas, ferns, peris, and gardenia (very little maintenance) . Be very careful with the vinca major as they can be invasive(very high maintenance). You might also want to consider hydrangeas and dogwood. It has turned out beautiful so far; you have a very nice area. Good plantings!

I can't help you with plants in your zone. I just want to say how beautiful your setting is. I love it.

Just a suggestion moving forward: Let the leaves lie there after they fall. That space looks pretty cleaned up for a natural area under that many trees. Over years, that helps to create better soil and slow down the water when it rains, allowing more absorption.

Hosta's would do well and need little or no maintainence

Great idea everybody! I agree with the suggestion to use Mondo - dwarf, in particular. I've seen it used almost like grass in large shady areas under trees. It can even be mowed for a great look.

We plant mondo down here in Georgia all the time in clay. If you want it to take off a little faster, bust up more dirt. Perhaps even the whole area that you plan to plant. Loose soil = easier to grow roots. small hole in clay = terra cotta pot.

Marvin R - go for mondo. The mondo is great looking and requires little care other than water. You will love the plant. They are small, medium & large so you must decide which one you like. I have small & large in my yard.

I love so many of the suggestions for shade. After you map out what you want to plant where an excellent mail order resource for many of these plants is: www.gardencrossings.com They have very healthy plants & there shipping system is phenomenal. Good luck & happy gardening!

Native ferns along the creek. Dead nettle (lamium maculatum) is a great ground cover--spreads with underground stolens--can be invasive down here in the south but Round-up easily controls it. My two favorite var. are "Beacon Silver"(leaf is silv.grey w/green margins or "Anna Greenway"(green & chartreuse leaves).

Japanese Holly ferns and Autumn ferns make a nice mix for shady areas and look nice throughout the winter months in NC. They are also deer resistant. Other deer resistant options are hellebore, mahonia, sweetbox, and Japanese yews. We consider hostas, azaleas, and hydrangeas deer food so use these sparingly if deer are grazing in your neighborhood.

if you would like some brighter leaves, Acuba comes in quite. A few streaked, speckled varieties.

Every ones suggestions are good so why don't you do a grouping of each suggested then next year you'll see which one did better then others. Hostas get buggy at the end of the season so if your not cutting them down to the ground once there spent they look ugly. Lental Roses are my favorite even if you have just a bunch of them in one spot it will make that whole area pop. The mondo grass is lovely, but I wouldn't cut it. How lucky are you, that you can actually plant the mondo grass in ...»

Hi Marvin,

No one has mentioned deer resistant, but you will probably want to consider that. Hosta, for example is a delicacy for deer. Most of the low growing ground covers are safe, as are ferns and Lenten rose. Would hate to see you put $$ and effort into deer food!

Unless, of course... you don't mind hunting in your own front yard.

I have found that the closer your plantings replicate the surrounding environment, the less tempting they will be to various wild 'salad eaters'. I might suggest a book that I picked up in college (and still use to this day) called "Gardening with Native Plants of the South" by Sally and Andy Wasowski. It's chock full of info and photos on a wide variety of different native plants for just about any different ecological situation. The trick is finding some of them. A lot of that isn't ...»

There are some terrific suggestions and ideas posted for this project. I think we are all excited about seeing the results. Love to dish the dirt!!!

I was just wondering what is planted in the boxes on top. I also noticed that you have a lot of filtered light so you can easily plant some grasses. Just stay away from the tiger grass as it gets huge and it really difficult to cut down or move after it's been planted. Another low growing very green ground covering is Ginger. It's really lovely because the leaves stay so green. I planted some ajuga along a drive way for a customer in zone 5 and it's lovely but it has to be thinned out ...»

Oh your place is just beautiful. I think Hosta's do well in the shade down here, but I am not sure about that red clay you have.

Asian jasmine would be good....