Plant Guide

Other Names:  Border Grass, Lilyturf

Description:

A tufted grass-like perennial with arching, glossy, dark green leaves that grow no more that a foot; provides a beautiful display of lovely lavender and white flowers atop showy spikes; best used as an edging plant or massed as a groundcover

Ornamental Features

Lily Turf features dainty spikes of lavender flowers with white overtones rising above the foliage in late summer. Its attractive glossy grassy leaves remain dark green in color throughout the season. It features an abundance of magnificent black berries in early fall.

Landscape Attributes

Lily Turf is a dense herbaceous perennial with a ground-hugging habit of growth. Its medium texture blends into the garden, but can always be balanced by a couple of finer or coarser plants for an effective composition.

This plant will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and is best cleaned up in early spring before it resumes active growth for the season. Gardeners should be aware of the following characteristic(s) that may warrant special consideration;

• Spreading

Lily Turf is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• Border Edging
• General Garden Use
• Groundcover

Planting & Growing

Lily Turf will grow to be about 12 inches tall at maturity extending to 16 inches tall with the flowers, with a spread of 24 inches. Its foliage tends to remain dense right to the ground, not requiring facer plants in front. It grows at a fast rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 10 years. As an herbaceous perennial, this plant will usually die back to the crown each winter, and will regrow from the base each spring. Be careful not to disturb the crown in late winter when it may not be readily seen!

This plant does best in partial shade to shade. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This species is not originally from North America. It can be propagated by division.