Laura Walters
Anyone who lives in a hot climate understands the challenge of maintaining a lush, green lawn during the heat of summer. Rather than fighting against your native climate, try heat-tolerant ground cover plants as a low-maintenance alternative that adds beauty and durability to your landscape.
Though many hot climate ground covers are highly adaptable, gardeners need to carefully consider the specific conditions of their own growing zone when choosing ground cover plants. Paying special attention to temperature is especially important for gardeners in hot southern regions and other parts of the U.S. that experience high summer temperatures. Learning more about specific ground covers for hot climates can help you select plants that are best suited to your landscape.
One notable characteristic of many heat-loving ground covers is the ease with which they’re able to spread and fill in a landscape. This is great for gardeners looking for a quick transformation in their yard or garden, but if plants spread too aggressively they can become a problem rather than a solution. Before planting, research each plant and whether it is considered invasive in your area.
Find the perfect plant match for your heat-loving ground covers! Shop our gardening experts' favorite varieties for summer.
Best Ground Covers for Heat
Often overlooked, heat-loving ground cover plants can be both useful and attractive additions to the landscape. Many ground cover plants are able to thrive under a wide range of growing conditions, including shaded areas as well as hot and sunny planting sites. Here are some of the best ground covers for heat that look fresh and lovely all summer long.
1. Creeping Juniper
Hardy to USDA zones 4-9, creeping juniper plants are among the most robust ground covers for hot climates. These blue-hued evergreens, like this turquoise cultivar from Home Depot, serve as a beautiful addition to the landscape all year long.
Juniper ground cover plants are ideal for growing down large slopes and look especially stylish when they’re allowed to cascade from the sides of walls or containers. They’re also a popular choice if you are looking to control erosion in the landscape.
2. Bugleweed
Also known as carpet bugle or ajuga, bugleweed is a semi-evergreen ground cover with deep, glossy leaves. Among the most colorful hot climate ground covers, each plant produces a profusion of bright blue-purple flower spikes each spring. There are even black-leaved cultivars, like the stunning ‘Black Scallop’ bugleweed, which you can get by the flat from Amazon.
Bugleweed grows best in lightly shaded areas and woodland gardens. Over time, the plant is able to spread to form a thick mass, which easily suppresses weeds. Monitor this fast-growing ground cover to ensure plants do not escape garden beds.
3. Creeping Thyme
Producing an abundance of tiny purple flowers, creeping thyme is one of the most popular flowering ground covers available. It’s incredibly low maintenance and many varieties are also quite fragrant.
Most gardeners suggest planting creeping thyme near paths and around garden stepping stones. You can also grow a creeping thyme lawn as an easy-care alternative to a traditional turfgrass yard. Start your lawn from seed with these Eden Brothers creeping thyme seeds from Amazon or these perennial wild thyme, also known as Mother of Thyme, seeds from the Gardening Know How Shop.
4. Liriope
Liriope, also known as monkey grass, reaches about 12 inches (30 cm) high at maturity, making it taller than most heat-loving ground covers. It’s another evergreen plant but this lovely, low-maintenance option produces a profusion of grass-like foliage that makes a beautiful edging for paths through the landscape.
Liriope is one of the best plants for under trees and it also looks right at home in formal ornamental garden borders. This variegated variety from Home Depot would look stunning under the shade of an oak tree or lining a path to your front door.
5. Stonecrop
Stonecrop, which is a heat-loving type of sedum, is a low-growing perennial that functions as a great ground cover for hot climates. Succulent foliage makes stonecrop an exceptionally interesting addition to the landscape.
This adaptable plant is able to withstand both hot temperatures and prolonged periods without water, making it a wonderful drought-tolerant ground cover as well. Stonecrop plants are best suited to planting sites with good drainage, like rock gardens and xeriscape lawns. Explore a variety of stonecrop ground cover plants from Lowe’s to find the perfect one for your yard.
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