[RVC1]

I'm about a third of the way through pouring a row of concrete pavers in my front yard. Once done I'd like to plant some kind of green between the pavers. The area around them is only a few inches and will surround the 12 large pavers.

These are the pavers:

And what I'm lookin for is something like:

So does anyone have experience with this? What works? I'm in Los Angeles so that's important. It would need to be drought tolerant and require less water. The area is partially in the shade.

Elfin Thyme looks nice. Would that work, or a similar moss type plant?

Creeping Thyme?

I've also seen some longer greens mentioned like Dichondra (Carolina Ponysfoot?), Dymondia, Mondo grass (Dwarf lilyturf?)...?

Anyway, I know it's tricky here in LA. I'd love to hear if someone has been successful, what did you use? Oh and I'm not interested in using fake grass.

Thanks!

 

[DoomsDave]

@RVC1, nice to meet you! I think we've conversed before?

Hmm, where in LA are you? I ask because there's a huge practical difference between, say, Mar Vista, on the one hand, and Granada Hills, say, on the other. One has a relatively moderate climate and the other much less so.

Just an initial thought: Bermuda grass is tough, dense and spreads, and could be used in your situation, though it tends to get a bit big for its britches after a while.

RUN SCREAMING from dichondra! It's lovely when it's nice. But, it's a bay-watch to keep nice; in particular, those [expletive!] flea beetles can destroy it overnight, unless you spray with nasty bug killer all the time.

What kind of tree is that? Looks like a Shamel Ash.

Nice looking path by the way! Very professional!

 

[RVC1]

Hey Dave,

Yes we have conversed before, thanks for the response!

I'm in North Hollywood, so the east valley. Hot and dry.

I'm looking up Bermuda Grass like you mentioned. It seems like it's used as a lawn grass? Will it be too hard to keep in LA?

Do you have experience with Elfin Thyme or other moss?

I'll definitely stay away from Dichondra, I don't want to deal with insects. I had that issue with some Blue Carex grass in my backyard.

That tree is a large pine tree. I love it, gives a lot of nice shade. Only downsides are the pine needles and the roots destroying our pipes.

Oh and thanks, I've never some anything with concrete so I'm pretty happy with the way it's turning out.

Thanks!

 

[de-nagorg]

I second Bermuda Grass.

It is drought tolerant, tough to kill with traffic, but it needs to be kept short, or it goes to seed, and retires for the season.

And your seasons are long on heat and short on cold, I envy that, but not the OVERCROWDING.


ED

 

[Mule Skinner]

Real turf is nice and Bermuda would be good choice, but perhaps to reduce maintenance have you thought about artificial turf. There are some good products out there if you look around.

 

[DoomsDave]

@RVC1, good to hear from you again.

I don't really know about Thyme, I'd be curious as to what you learn and if you use it.

It's not moss, though, that much I do know, and, some mosses will take a surprising amount of heat and dry, though I think they're better in places like Ohio.

As @de-nagorg noted, Bermuda Grass goes dormant, i.e., turns brown for the winter. If you want year-round green, don't use it, unless you want to give it an annual dye job. (I'm not kidding; we used to sell this green dye in the old Garden Shop of Doom.) But, it's tougher to eradicate than sorrow, no question. It will need trimming, though you could use a weed-whacker for that.

The more I think about it, given the limited area, the better I like the idea of something other than grass. One thought: maybe go to the LA County Arboretum over in Arcadia. They have a lot of cool plants, nice to take the kids and spouse, open spaces. And, they're open! https://www.arboretum.org/ There'll be a bunch of plants you can see, including groundcovers, including, I suspect, thyme, that you'll be able to see "in action" in a landscape.

That's what I'd do.

And, fire away with further questions. It's good you're taking a deliberate approach. Don't go wild like I did in my garden . . . .

 

[dj3]

My 2 cents:
- If you want green between the slabs, use artificial grass.
- Otherwise, consider color gravel, set 1/2" lower than the slabs, so they stay in place.
True low maintenance options.

 

[DoomsDave]

Good suggestion @dj3!

Here’s a shot of a very nice artificial turf installation at a friend’s house.

 

[RVC1]

I'm worried about Bermuda going dormant, and needing to be trimmed. Though I'm not afraid of maintaining it if it's the right choice. And the area will be small, overall. But I'd like to try something other than grass. And I'm definitely not interested in fake grass, I'd rather use gravel at that point.

Thanks for the tip about Arboretum. My wife's parents live in Arcadia, we can plan a visit very easily.

I think I'll take a trip to a nursery and see if there are any suggestions. I just thought I'd be starting with seeds - maybe I can purchase and test some options as I'm finishing the pavers.

 

[DoomsDave]

RVC1, look for plants that can tolerate a bit of foot traffic. Colored gravel isn't necessarily bad, though it does get kicked around, especially if you have kids in the family.

 

[de-nagorg]

Overnight I had an epiphany and thought about this.

I would dig my WETSAW out of storage, and get as many bricks as necessary from a supply yard, to cut them down to size to fit in the space, then add polymeric sand to the tiny gaps, and gently water the assembly to lock it in.

You can get 3" X 8" X 16", flat blocks, and cut the width you need to fill your space, lay them end to end to surround the concrete that you have poured.

This will be decorative, no maintenance, or plant dying from foot traffic.

You can rent a WETSAW from HD, or a tool rental store, for not much money a week.


ED

 

[Nik333]

Ground cover just seems like a maintenance nightmare & gravel would be kicked around.


I looked up mosaic tile between pavers and so many interesting things came up, including totally off topic as usual.


Scroll down - https://www.google.com/search?sourc...qAhWOVc0KHe9QCsQQ7Al6BAgBEDE&biw=1093&bih=501


https://www.google.com/search?q=iri...-KwKHRKpB4sQrNwCKAB6BQgBEI8C&biw=1614&bih=751

 

[RVC1]

Hi everyone, I thought I'd give an update and show how this project looks finished. I ended up using Dymondia which was a really great choice (so far, imo). I was worried it would be too hot but I decided to not wait until after the summer. It turns out that it's a hardy plant and has survived the heat. I've been watering everyday. Anyway, take a look.

 

[DoomsDave]

Yow, good choice might do same!

Great layout on the stones, too.