Pennsylvania hardiness zone 6b. This tiny dirt strip is in between our porch and a low-traffic alleyway. We just moved in so we don’t know if the alley gets salted in winter or not.
It’s primarily grass, clover, and broadleaf plantain right now. The property manager said I can make whatever changes I want to the yard (within reason) as long as I’m willing to revert it back if the next tenants don’t want to maintain it (we don’t plan on moving for years).
I have bigger native plant projects in the works on the property right now, but I can’t get this spot out of my mind. I’ve thought about planting it with tiny flowering plants, like chickweed. Or, hanging a trellis against the concrete and planting something vining.
What would you do, if anything?
by LilBoxOfDeadThings
13 Comments
I like the idea of a trellis with native wisteria, honeysuckle, or clematis
How much sun does it get?
I forgot to say, it’s south facing and does not get shade during the day.
I think I’d assume it’ll get salt, if not salted directly then runoff from cars that track it into the alley.
Two come to mind: purple love grass and Canada anemone. Neither would be huge plants vertically but add color and texture. Canada anemone is known for spreading so it might take over a lot of the strip if planted, but that can be a good thing if it’s a strip that’s otherwise tough to keep things growing in.
Purple Lovegrass.
It also depends on how much that spot gets ran over. Usually when I am asked about spots like this, I always suggest native grasses.
Creeping phlox! I bet it would look stunning there
Plant some tall zinnia and cosmo seeds, they’re annuals that bloom quickly and will give you time to do research about perennials to plant for long term.
Some kind of ground cover like pussytoes
I like the idea of a good ground cover for the bottom right portion. 12-18 inches vertical something hardy. And above Canadian anemone was mentioned. Would be a great one.
And a trellis through the section of the stairs. With native clematis. And get a bright color. Well, find out what is native. I’m in Minnesota, I have no clue for your region/zone. There is some potential to definitely brighten this space up.
Good luck
If spiderwort is native to your area it’s pretty tough and doesn’t get too tall
Ground cover. Phlox subulata or Silene caroliniana would be good choices. They’re generally pretty tolerant, and they’re less likely to be mistaken for weeds and removed later, like chickweed would be unfortunately.
I love Phlox, but lately I’ve been trying to incorporate a little more Silene, because it supports even more wildlife.
Either one are extremely short, won’t require mowing, and will look enough like lawn at a passing glance that I can’t imagine anyone having a problem with them.
Clustered mountain mint, seaside or blue stem goldenrods, switch grass, little bluestem, black eyed Susan. Please also add a thick layer of woodchip or other mulch (2-3 inches) because that spot is going to really heat up sandwiches between the cement and building. The plants will probably need extra watering the first year
Whatever can handle heat, because that pavement and concrete will absorb a ton of heat.