PlantFiles: Bugle, Bugleweed, Carpet Bugle
Ajuga reptans

Ajuga is a hit-and-miss success for me.After a couple of seasons it tends to die out in spots, and some years almost completely dissapears. I have better luck with it when i rejuvenate it by periodically pulling up the offshoots and transplanting them. But where and when it does well, its a real treasure. It blooms in sweeping drifts simultaneously with my yellow Oxslip primroses and white daffodils, and the combination is beautiful beyond description-a show that lasts 2 to 3 weeks in late may/early june.

As with any plant, you have to plant it in a carefully picked location to fill your needs and the needs of the plant. I planted this in a fairly shady bed without really anything else in it, and it filled in really nicely within 3 years--approximately a 7 foot by 3 foot bed from 3 plants in quart-size pots. I was impressed! It looks nice and quickly fills in bare spots. Since there really wasn't anything else planted there, I don't know if it would grow around other plants or choke them out. It does survive Wisconsin's often very cold (mostly below 0F winter with 2 weeks of -20F to -30F last winter) long winters and then often erratic summers of 80-90F that go from lots of rain one week to little rain the next and back and forth across the board.

This plant was in the roots of a hosta I planted 6 years ago when we moved to this house. Since then, it has spread slowly but steadily out of the shade bed. I mow over it every week and it doesn't mind. It grows in full shade and full sun where it was accidentally transplanted. It grows in wet soil and dry ones but wilts quickly in drought. It grows in compacted clay easily. It is pretty when it blooms and even though it has spread into the edge of the lawn, it has not caused any problems. Maybe the mowing has kept it from spreading more!

For me, it and other ajugas cultivars had been more of a wimp. I have tried it in several locations and either after the first year, it dies during the winter or it spreads itself, becoming thinner and thinner as it spreads out and then dies after three to four years. I give it low rating as a ground cover, because of its low height and prefer to clumping and give itself a wide space of bare soil, encouraging weeds to move in.

Good easy plant for part shade. Quick growing and can survive a good massacre when you rip a big part of it out cause its grown too much. Easy to transplant and divide, purple flowers in spring and grows in sun, shade and inbetween.

Years ago when I first planted ajuga, I loved it. It filled in quickly and was beautiful and thick. It is a very fragile plant and cannot withstand being stepped on.

The main negative aspects are that it needs tons of water and protection from the evening sun. I planted it where it was in shade until about 4:00 in the afternoon. The evening Texas sun is too much for this plant in the summer. If I wanted it to survive the summer, I literally had to soak it every other day for at least 30 minutes. And it still got scorched. I did this for the first year after I planted it.

I have since planted xeriscape plants and stopped watering. All of my beautiful ajuga has completely disappeared.

I have plain Ajuga planted on one of my less frequently traveled paths, and love it. It survives hot, dry weather, and perks up right after a rain. I have had it in some beds, and while it takes a bit of persistence to get out, it can be done. It is nice contrast and keeps grows thick enough to keep weeds out.

This is an invaluable ground cover as long as it is contained. It's colour is brilliant, the bees and our Mama hummer love it. We did have one season when it performed poorly, I believe due to less water just before spring bloom. It transplants extremely well, so when I am trimming up the edge runners, it gets donated to friends and transfers very easily.

This is a wonderful plant in my opinion. Here in south Texas it does suffer a bit during the summer months if you can't keep it watered. Most of the people I know who have great success with ajuga here in our climate plant it on the edge of a pond or marshy area. It will spread rapidly but is so nice trailing in the water. I have seen it planted on waterfalls as well here and it nicely fills in cracks and crevices you might want to disguise.

My mother and sister have had great luck with this plant in Michigan. I am trying to grow it in Monterey, CA. I have had it in the ground since late July and so far the plants are doing well. They are growing larger but I don't have any runners yet.

This is a great fast growing groundcover. It's foliage is beautiful as are the flowers. I have it growing under some elephant ears that come up after they bloom.

For my worst areas, ajuga has proven indespensible. It grows under water, in soil that is completely spent, in places over-run with maple roots, in dense shade, and in full sun. Even crowns planted upside down survived!

I planted this in an area with partial shade and it has been a bit disappointing in that it has not spread as quickly as I had expected. Can it be a problem with the soil, or do I have the a variety that doesn't propagate?

Bugleweed,a semi-evergreen, is used in folk medicine to treat external wounds because it helps stop bleeding. It is believed by some that it is somewhat narcotic and sedative, however it may cause cardiac arrest as foxglove can if it is used incorrectly. Harvest in the summer using fresh plants to make an ointment or an oil to treat wounds.
Cultivation-seems to grow well in partial sun but thrives- so far- in full sun. Average to below average watering.

In Zone 3 of Northern Wiscsonin:

Positive: Strong grower & spreads fast. Bees absolutely love it, counted up to 10 in an area of flowering Ajuga, 6 feet square. Beautiful foliage color: leaves become more purple in direct sunlight, while staying green in pure shade.

Negative: Almost too strong of a grower. To remove it completely from an area that it was once growing is becoming a nightmare, pulling and spraying, and it still comes up again occasionally.

For me however, the positives out-weigh the negatives. We use it as a groundcover in the backs of our flower beds, between our perennials. It serves as mulch (erosion control, shading soil, moisture retaining), attracts bees, and provides foliar color when it is not flowering.

I love ajuga but I haven't had it overrun anywhere. It tolerates dry shade, an unusual situation, as well as full sun. The species I have is wild, it was at the bottom of my driveway between my neighbor and myself. He re-dug his ditch and piled the dirt and rock on top of the ajuga patch, but it came back the next year.

So far, I have high regard for this plant - but it's far away from my lawn. I need a groundcover to fill in around a seating area, and this is filling the bill nicely. Hopefully I won't regret planting it.

I discovered this plant in my lawn a few years ago. Now it's everywhere, displacing grass and garden alike. (Ajuga is also planted in the medieval herb garden at the Cloisters in upper Manhattan - New York City). I have found it incredibly invasive and impossible to eradicate. Even after weeding it carefully, so as not to break it off from its many runners, it returns as vigorous as ever. Might be wonderful in a container or under a watchful eye - but don't turn your back on it.

Easily grown in average, medium wet, well-drained soil in full sun to part shade. Best foliage color in sun but also grows well in shade. Wide soil tolerance, but prefers moist, humusy soils. Provide good air circulation and divide when clumps become overcrowded. A slow growing plant that is less invasive than many of the other ajugas. Plants may be mowed on high setting after blooming in order to remove spent flower spikes and to tidy the appearance of the planting.

Deadheading prevents excessive seeding and improves the overall appearance of the plant. Hedge shears or a weed whacker/string trimmer, can be used for large plantings.

Plants usually can even tolerated occasional, but NOT repeated mowing. Cut back runners drastically whenever necessary to keep plant from spreading too far. Thinning of plants can reduce the incidence of crown rot, if plants are infected, prune out diseased sections.

Plants are evergreen, do not prune for winter. Deadleafing may be required to clean up plants a bit in the spring or occasionally through the growning season.