How To Plant Groundcovers Around Pavers

Here is the Irish Moss all happy and blooming with sweet little white flowers right before we ripped it out.

The flower bed and path before our current yard project kicked off. The deck was supposed to start where the grey stones meet the brown mulch. To see how I created the trellis seen on the fence here, check out this post.

Current state of that early project.

This part of the yard had been the most put together and I feel sort of sad to take it apart after our hard work.

New home for the moss!

This is our front yard. Since it sits atop retaining walls, it is more of just a path. We have lavender plants on either side, but looking toward the concrete patio in the distance, there is so much hardscape. To soften the hardness, I will plant the Irish Moss here! Have you ever wondered “what type of plants can I plant between pavers?” Groundcovers are perfect! There is actual moss, Irish moss, which isn’t actually a moss, creeping thyme and more.

Tip: I’ve noticed plant tags at nurseries will say “Good for foot traffic” or some similar wording. Look for this when shopping for groundcovers to plant between pavers.

Gather materials.

Other than clumps of groundcover to transplant (or new plants), you will need a small hand shovel, soil, a cutting tool to cut through landscape fabric, and gloves. As I was working I also grabbed some empty buckets to hold the gravel I dug up.

Dig up the Irish Moss.

If you have pavers and have been wanting to incorporate some sort of groundcover, the next steps will be helpful.

Scoop back gravel.

Scoop/dig until reaching the landscape fabric.

Cut an “X” shape into the fabric.

Add soil to surround your plant.

The blue gloves belong to my son; he was my helper for this project. Make sure to add enough soil so that the plant sits level with your paver. My goal is to have the Irish Moss grow partially on the pavers for a secret garden look.

Set plant in place.

Add extra soil as needed and then replace gravel and rocks, or whatever you might have in your path.

Fertilize and water.

The plants look a little sad after being transplanted. After some fertilizer and water, hopefully they will flourish like they had in the back!

Thank you for reading! Have you ever planted groundcovers between pavers? What did you use? Drop me a comment to let me know.

To follow along with more of my DIY adventures, visit me here.