Pachysandra (Pachysandra Terminalis)

Few ground covers make such a thick, dense evergreen bed as pachysandra. It doesn’t do its job overnight but just wait, for as the saying goes, the first year pachysandra sleeps, the second it creeps and the third it leaps. It is hardy to at least Zone 4, and is an excellent solution to the problem of what to plant right around tree trunks where sunlight is scarce and mowing is difficult. It grows up to a foot tall with attractive, dark green, tooth edged leaves arranged in whorls. The white flower spikes in spring are neither numerous nor conspicuous; even less noticeable are the whitish berries that follow. The variety “Variegata” has white-edged leaves and can effectively lighten up a dark, shaded area. Source: Charismatic Planet

How to Grow Paschysandra

You can grow Pachysandra in full or part shade, but make sure to avoid sunny sites. Not only will the leaves yellow in the sun, but grasses will come up amongst the pachysandra, and they’re very arduous cult to eradicate. Any ordinary soil will do, but it should not be too dry and should be on the acid side. Plant pachysandra deeper than it was in the flat, so more roots will form along the stems. It roots very easily from cuttings.

If you’re planting some you have dug up at a friend’s house, and are dismayed by all those long, tangled stems, separate them and tie each one in a knot, then plant them. We always mulch newly planted pachysandra although once established it won’t need mulch because it grows so thickly. If you have problems with leaf and stem blight, which begins with brown blotches on the leaves and spreads to the stems, don’t use heavy mulch, and rake fallen leaves and any diseased plants out of the bed. Euonymus scale is occasionally a problem with pachysandra it is best dealt with by pruning out infested plants and spraying the others with dormant oil in early spring before growth starts.