Pachysandra Japanese Spurge

Japanese pachysandra is the dense, evergreen groundcover that has been the default answer to shade gardening for half a century. It grows six to twelve inches tall, spreading by underground stolons into a uniform mat of dark green, whorled leaves. Small, white flower spikes appear in early spring at the stem tips, not showy, but present. Native to Japan and China, it has been planted so extensively in American shade gardens that it has become almost synonymous with groundcover.

In Western Washington, pachysandra performs well in part shade to full shade with moist, well-drained soil. It is reliably evergreen through our winters and creates a dense, weed-suppressing carpet once established. 'Green Sheen' has glossier foliage than the species. 'Silver Edge' adds a white margin to the leaves. No significant disease or pest concerns are tracked, though volutella blight can thin patches in hot, humid conditions. The criticism of pachysandra is that it is boring, a monoculture carpet with no seasonal change. The defense is that it works, consistently and permanently, in the shade conditions where most plants fail. If you want more visual interest, combine it with ferns, hellebores, and bulbs that push through the carpet.