Don't have an answer, but I am very interested in the outcome of this experiment. Please keep us updated on how fast it grows, overwintering, weed blocking, and how it does in summer heat/drought. I see this rated for full shade - you pic looks like fairly "bright" and dappled shade - not the dense shade you see under heavy tree cover, so I think you will be fine. I think these little guys are somewhat drought sensitive, so erring on the side of less direct sunlight might be a good call for maintaining moisture.

I am doing a very similar experiment with herniaria glabra in part to full sun and will post my results as well. Many of these groundcovers have not been tested thoroughly for adaptability to our climates, so we could all use some more experimental data!

Hi mistascott,

UPDATE: So after I planted those plugs seen in the picture I ordered a bunch more and finished in the back half of the yard. Unfortunately, almost all failed. I noticed those planted in the back half had melted away within weeks. I say melted because it seemed they got smaller and smaller and just disappeared into the dirt until I couldn't even tell where I had planted them.

In the front, where I had planted first I noticed those within the first few feet from the patio, say the patio to the farthest of the three rectangular stepping stones, seemed to survive. For a while they seemed to be thriving in that space the whole width of the yard. But then the plugs on the right started melting away. Now, it's hard for me to find any leptinella on the right unless I look carefully. Some of the plugs did disappear completely, but others seemed to die out from the base but had spread enough underground to keep an existence however small. I am hopeful those that managed to survive will get stronger and continue to spread until they are more noticeable.

On the left of that front few feet, the leptinella seems to have the strongest hold. I would say about 60% of the plugs survived and have spread a bit. They are not as solid looking, again, it's like the central part of the plant was weakened or died but enough runners spread that it has a good hold on the little plot around it. I will try to take pictures to post as illustration.

THAT ALL SAID: I noticed some of the plugs had White Star Creeper mixed in which has spread quite well also in this front area, MUCH better than the leptinella, to the point that it is creating a "green" ground impression which I had wanted all along. So I went ahead and ordered a bunch of WSC plugs and spread them around the sides and back of the yard space and then in a circle around the middle tree. I hope they'll fill in nicely, but I have already noticed some melting away as well.

Some ideas: I think there is real dependence on the amount of sun and moisture that makes the difference but it's hard to figure out. The front most part of the yard where stuff seemed to do the best, comparatively, gets the most sun in Spring/Summer. The front left gets the most moisture since it also is the natural run-off area for water on the patio. The back and right side of the yard gets the most shade due to the close buildings, and this is deepest shade as the summer ends and the sun gets lower in the sky.

I have tried to keep leaves off and have watered as methodically as possible after the WSC was put in, hoping heavy watering would make the difference with those that melted away since I think I was lax with watering when the plugs first went in.

The landlord of the building to the east/other side of the fence is planning to cut down three mulberry trees on his property that provide most of the shade to my yard. I think this may actually help my efforts since they block the early and midday sun, while by the time the hot afternoon sun is overhead it will be behind the buildings soon anyway. I am hopeful that more sun, not less will help since those in the deepest shade areas tend to melt/die first.

Here is some leptinella gruveri (miniature brass buttons) in the front that seems to be doing okay. I think it was two separate plugs, and one has stayed more centralized and the other has spread a bit and decentralized.

Here is some leptinella from the front but more to the right side of the yard that seems to be struggling but is still there and may yet survive to spread more.

Here's some leptinella that is almost melted away; it did not seem to spread out and is disappearing. This was in the far right side of the front of the yard.

Here you can see the extensive spread, almost a foot square or more, of two patches of White Star Creeper that had been mixed in with plugs of leptinella from the first planting. At the top above the moss, and below between the Japanese Toad Lilies, it has spread quite well and provided a green carpet appearance I am looking for.

Now here is a plug of the WSC I planted more recently at the back of the yard, sort of the middle of the back, looking quite healthy but not yet spreading. It's only been about a month or 6 weeks I think.

And here is a WSC plug planted at the same time, but more to the right side, which has started dying/melting away.

And last, here is a plug of White Star Creeper planted at the same time as the two previous pics, but farthest to the right, in the back (most shade) which has melted completely away. The only evidence it was there is the slightly lighter brown dirt and a couple bare greenish stems left over.

Gardengal48, yes! I was being a bit too hopeful/optimistic that I could get it to succeed in my yard with these conditions since I had noticed the image searches did show much more open and lighted areas for the leptinella thriving. I wanted to believe the retail sites which said it thrived in deep shade as I desperately wanted to cover up the brown dirt somehow. :-/

Well, as mentioned, I am hopeful when the neighbor does cut down the big trees on his property that I'll have much more luck with ground cover, even if it does do in some of my more shade-loving perennials... I suspect my azaleas will also be happier.

I'll probably try to update again in late spring 2015 to let anyone interested know if any of the leptinella or white star creeper managed to survive the winter or spread.

> Posted by gardengal48
> in the nursery industry... Leptinella... part shade....
> And that partial shade designation was for those growing it in a hot summer climate.

Might we reasonably generalize to all "partial shade" designated plants,
i.e. that it is industry convention to presume hot climate?

UPDATE - Nothing seems to have made it though the winter. :( However, I do have a much more moss appearing all over now. Since my original original plan had been to make it mossy back there, it seems to be the silver lining to this otherwise waste of time, money and effort. :)

Followup here, hoping some more people may have experience with this mini or dwarf version of brass buttons 'leptinella gruveri'. Seems the New Zealand and Platt's Black 'leptinella squalida' is much more common and even searching the dark corners of the worldwide interwebs has yielded minimal anecdotal experiences.

I'm looking to grow it in the piedmont area of NC zone 7b in fairly deep shade under trees.

Leptinella gruveri is not tolerant of heavy or deep shade. At best, it will tolerate only partial shade and prefers evenly moist soil. "fairly deep shade under trees" is generally deficient in both those conditions.