Since I probably won t check on this new garden every day, the plants need to be tough guys who can survive and thrive without a lot of babying. Most of my garden is like that. I ll also want plants that spread and cover ground. If I don t cover the ground with plants of my choice, Mother Nature will do her best to cover it with something. And her choices are generally real thugs.
Groundcovers don t have to be low creepers.
Some plants cover ground at an amazing rate and are best used in relatively rough areas. Some plants are very difficult to eradicate once you let them in, if the conditions suit them. If you put them in less than ideal conditions they are better behaved. Nevertheless, you need to think seriously about introducing them in the first place so that you don t have to spend years cursing yourself while you try to get rid of them. To my mind, this makes them more difficult to remove than plants that spread by seed.