Thanks for that tip, I will pass that along to the Lawn Guy. He is anxious for the pachysandra to grow in because he will then be able to lay the stone paths, which is a lucrative job for him. :-) We had mondo grass growing between the stones on the path to the tennis court, but it was so hot on that side the grasses died towards the court, so we filled those lower spaces with pea gravel. I am looking forward to having shady paths where the mondo with be thick and luxurious between the stones. Thank you again for all your help! I forgot to add the existing path photo, this was taken a few months after it was installed. After one summer the mondo from the middle of the length through to the lowest point was completely dead--- even with twice weekly watering, and was replaced with pea gravel. Even the mondo between the stones at the gate end has not thrived as we had hoped it would. This post was edited by kswl on Sat, Nov 30, 13 at 8:24

Sweet woodruff? I love this groundcover, and it seems to do quite well in my rather dry shade. Cranesbill is a good idea too. Never thought of using it as a groundcover. Just remembered. I have a shade garden on the northwestern side of my house (maybe an hour of early afternoon sun) which has been absolutely, totally neglected this year. It was wonderfully, gorgeously wild there this year - it is my oldest garden and is fairly established. In one spot, under some dwarf azaleas, I have a patch of rockcress (arabis??) which has spread nicely. It does grow out onto a pathway, so I usually just snip it off here and there when I think of it and plunk it down elsewhere to root. I think I've only watered this garden once this year, and that was pretty lightly too. The rockcress does quite well despite my neglect. The small white flowers were nothing to write home about (or maybe mine just didn't bloom well in the shade) but I like this plant for the foliage anyway. :) Dee

Native pachysandra (P. procumbens or Allegheny spurge) has a grayer color to the foliage, spreads slowly and tends to be decidious in northern locations. Japanese pachy (P. terminalis) should have a rich, deep green color, is fully evergreen and will tolerate deep shade. There are a number of cultivars - 'Green Sheen' has very glossy foliage, 'Variegata' has a thin white edge, 'Green Carpet' is short (to 4") and 'Cut Leaf' has deeply dissected foliage.

I'm looking for an evergreen groundcover that won't be decimated by deer. Ivy is decimated. Pachysandra and periwinkle seem do do well. I'd like to try Allegheny spurge, but first want to know whether deer avoid it like the Asian variety. Can I intersperse the two pachysandras or will the native be overwhelmed? I have acres to landscape, so I need all the practical advice I can get on sourcing and propagation. Thank you!