Black Scallop Ajuga

Need a reliable and attractive groundcover for those difficult spots? Black Scallop Ajuga is your answer, reliable and hardy in almost every zone, the ground-hugging rosettes of evergreen leaves are such a dark red they are almost black. Turn boring bare soil into a dark glossy carpet, and enjoy the beauty of the intense, bright-blue flowers that rise magically in spring to play their bugles of welcome. Use it anywhere in your garden where the soil is bare, planting it in drifts beneath shrubs and trees or in problem places, like awkward narrow strips between paths and walls or fences. Looks great in every garden style, from natural and cottage gardens to formal areas behind boxwood hedges.

• Year-round foliage cover of very dark red, glossy leaves
• Becomes a beautiful carpet of blue in spring
• Dense, weed-blocking coverage of bare spots
• Grows in full sun to full shade
• Non-invasive and easily controlled

It is amazing the different light levels Black Scallop Ajuga is happy in. From full sun to light full shade, such as north shadows and dappled shade beneath trees – it is happy anywhere. Moist but well-drained soils are best, but it will grow in wet ground in cooler zones, and in dry spots, but it isn’t ideal for very dry areas. Pests, diseases and deer leave it alone. Run the mower over it after flowering if you want extra-neat, but otherwise just let it be – it’s self-maintaining. Although it does creep around a bit it is shallow-rooted and easily controlled.