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Expert: Kenneth Joergensen - 3/24/2005


Question
I am very lazy and love flowers!  I have planted an enclosed area in my yard with sparaxis(?) and would like to plant a ground cover over the bed to keep from having to weed all the time.  Do you have any suggestions?  Will the bulbs be "weeded" out?  I live in the south, so heat tolerance is an issue.  The bed is in full sun.
Thanks!

Answer
Sparaxis (harlequin flowers) will be damaged at temperatures below 28F, so if it gets freezing temperatures in winter you should probably not plant anything on top of the bulbs or you will loose the bulbs. A 2-3 inch layer of shredded hardoowd mulch, or other organic mulch is the best option. It also keeps moisture inside the beds.

When choosing a ground cover, I recommend the table listed below. It has a list of ground covers for southern florida (I don't know excactly where you live) but they should be able to handle hot sun. Choose some which are 3"-6" high, can handle sun (S) and is draught tolorant.

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/EH139#TABLE_1

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Kenneth Joergensen

Expertise

Can answer questions about spring and summer bulbs: selection, soil preparation, planting, fertilizing, designing with bulbs. I can also give references where to buy the bulbs and how to store them. Besides the typical bulbs (tulips, daffodils, amaryllis, lilies etc) I can also answer questions about other geophytes, such as tuberous begonia, dahlias, etc. When to start indoors, light requirement, etc. My experience is in cool season areas, but I can answer questions about warm season areas if given time to research matter.

Experience

Have worked with various bulbs (spring and summer bulbs). I am presently an allexpert advicer on the lawn message board also.

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