What to Put Between Pavers

• Written by Holly Hughes on June 19, 2022

Having created the perfect garden at home, now all that is left to do is to create the perfect walkway through it so you can better appreciate the different plants and flowers within it.

Paver walkways aren’t just functional or practical, helping you to link the different parts of a garden or weave your way through flower beds. Pavers can also be a garden decoration and ornament in and of themselves. 

For example, in an Italian-style or Greek-inspired garden, where hardscape features often take center stage, flagstone pavers are often an integral and important element. The same is true of pavers in Japanese gardens.

And, of course, if you are lucky enough to have a rose garden big enough to need a walkway through its various flower beds, pavers are a sensational compliment to a rose garden’s formal structure.

Related Post:Easy Roses to Grow

So, if you are planning to incorporate pavers into your garden but are unsure what to put around them, this article is here to help. Read on to discover what are the best ground cover plants for around your pavers and how best to use them to complete your landscape design.

Do I need to put ground cover between pavers?

Putting ground cover between pavers in the form of a hardy, low-growing plant offers several benefits. As already mentioned, and as this article will show, the plants often used to decorate pavers can be a feature in themselves, adding extra color and texture into your garden.

This is most important for smaller gardens, where space must be maximized and every feature – even the most practical – must be optimized to become a pleasing element. For smaller backyards or townhouse patios, pavers interwoven with creeping plants help to give an illusion of space and make for an interesting use of ground space! For more small garden landscaping ideas, clickhere.

While some stone pavers may appear harsh or incongruent in your garden, ground cover between pavers helps to soften this effect, creating a more naturalistic look for your patio or walkway.

Crucially, flanking your pavers with creeping plants is an easy way to suppress weeds and prevent them from invading the empty space. If you take care to choose plants that are low-maintenance and can stand some footfall, you can let these creepers do the hard work for you and keep weeds from around your pavers at all times!

What to grow between pavers?

The best outdoor ground cover ideas take a few key requirements into consideration when choosing plants for pavers. Firstly, whether you choose a walkway of flagstone with grass between stones or a pathway of pavers with creeping thyme, the height of the plant you choose is imperative.

Plants must be low-growing, reaching no more than a couple of inches in height at most. For a clean and tidy garden look, make sure your plants won’t grow so big that they look as if they are submerging your pavers. It is a good idea to measure the height of your pavers when laid out in your garden so you can choose appropriate plants accordingly.

Secondly, pavers are primarily walkways and so you need to choose ground cover that can hold up against wear and tear and pedestrian traffic. Not only should they be resilient, they should equally be low-maintenance, requiring little attention so that they essentially become a part of the pavers themselves.

Finally, you want your shrubs to have dense foliage that can spread (without being invasive!). This will not only repress weeds but create a unified, carpet look.

The best plants that grow between pavers

With these considerations in mind, what are the best plants to put around pavers? Here’s four of our favorites.

Creeping thyme

Creeping thyme and pavers are synonymous given how well this shrub fills in and around flagstones. Thriving in full sun, there are many varieties of this low-growing herb boasting an array of colors from yellow to dark and luscious green. 

Elfin thyme – which is only an inch tall – is a particularly good option as it can grow in tough soil, is quite tolerant to drought, and even has a lovely aroma to make walking across your pavers even more of a delight!

Blue star creeper

To add some flower power to your pavers, grow a creeper like blue star. Unsurprisingly, this plant gets its name from the light blue and star-shaped flowers that blossom atop its flat and verdant foliage.

Don’t be fooled by the delicate beauty of these blooms which, though most abundant in spring and summer, can appear almost year-round! Blue star creeper is a tough plant that can withstand a little trampling.

To enjoy the beauty of blue flowers indoors, treat yourself or a loved one to a bouquet from SendFlowers.

Lawn grass

For larger pavers that are spaced further apart, grass is a good option. Grass offers a carpet-like texture and appearance which can be very striking. Just be sure to bear in mind that grass, unlike other choices, requires some maintenance, like mowing and fertilizing, so be savvy in your paver placement to ensure you can maintain your grass effectively!

New Zealand brass buttons

A great lawn substitute is New Zealandbrass buttons – a shrub with leaves that resemble the foliage of ferns and, most appealingly, change color throughout the seasons. Beginning as almost yellow-looking buttons (hence the name), this plant then darkens to a golden red come fall, keeping your pathway looking interesting and natural all year round!  It’s best grown in well-draining soil in full or partial sun.

For an autumnal bouquet to match the bronzed crimson of brass buttons, sign up to monthly seasonal arrangements from EnjoyFlowers.

Of course, these are only four of many great ground cover options that will turn your pavers from a functional walkway into a stunning garden feature in their own right. Be sure to give your pavers the attention they deserve and fringe them with one of these plants today!