PlantFiles: Barren Strawberry
Waldsteinia ternata

I saw this on a Garden Conservatory Open Days Tour, and at one Japanese inspired home, this ground cover was all the buzz. Beautifully articulated glossy leaves, uniformly low, growing far and wide in sun, under open azeleas and into the evergreen shade. In Oregon, it's listed as an ornamental alternative to English Ivy, which is listed as Class B Noxious Weed.

From my closeup picture, you can see that my foliage is speckled, unlike the others, although I can't find any reference to there being different cultivars. It is a very distinctive and nice look. The bright yellow flowers stand up and look spectacular in a field in spring and fall, and the evergreen foliage looks good all year. It spread VERY fast, from 1 sq ft to about 600 sq ft in 2 yrs, forming a solid mat which choked out all other weeds and plants, and it climbs and grows over small bushes, etc, so it could be pretty invasive.

This can be a good ground cover plant for a wide range of sites around the garden, tolerating sun and light shade. Once established, plants even thrive in the very dry conditions found under trees or on a bank. The foliage, which is evergreen, attractively serrated and lobed, and resembles that of strawberries, builds up into dense, weed-smothering carpets. The flowers, in late spring and early summer, are single, bright yellow, and stand out well against the deep green foliage. I 've grown it one season in my garden, but pulled everything out..it spreaded to fast in my limited-space-garden and it did 'nt really fit either. Seeds are very easy to sow.