Creeping lilyturf
Liriope spicata · Asparagaceae
A lilyturf with narrower leaves that spreads by underground runners into a dense, grass-like carpet. It has small, pale lavender flowers in late summer.
- Size
- 12 in tall, 24 in wide
- Zones
- 4 to 10
- Light
- Part sun to shade
- Flowers
- Grown for its leaves; flowers early August to early September
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Carpet
A bed built around creeping lilyturf
The planner designed this bed around creeping lilyturf when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) cottage garden in zone 6, part shade. It chose the other plants from the 513 that suit those conditions, and says below why creeping lilyturf stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Creeping lilyturf × 8, dark green leaves
- 2 Dwarf lady's mantle × 17, green
- 3 Solomon's seal × 5, white
- 4 Tall astilbe 'Superba' × 3, purple
- 5 Bleeding heart × 1, pink
- 6 Hardy cyclamen × 12, pink
- 7 Fumewort × 5, red
Why this plant
- The only plant grown for its leaves. Leaf lasts all season, where a flower lasts a few weeks.
- The only fine leaves here. The rest are medium. A change of leaf keeps plants distinct when nothing is in flower.
- A classic partner for Solomon's seal. Both are on this plan. A pairing gardeners have proved outranks a general rule.
Why here
- Under the taller plants. It runs back between them as living mulch: there its job is to cover the soil, not to be looked at.
- 8 plants in 2 groups (5 and 3). Seen again further along, the same plant ties the bed together.
- Beside Solomon's seal. A recognised partner: the planner puts such plants together where it can.
Why now
- Here for its leaves, all year. They cover the 13 weeks between early March and late November when nothing on the plan is in flower.
- The only leaves in winter. From November to March it is what there is to look at.
Planned as a cottage garden: 27 of the 34 plants (79%), bulbs aside, stand alone or in groups of no more than five, small enough for the kinds to mingle. The scheme leans cool (purple and pink) and uses red for warmth, with green and white to calm things between them. The flowers run from mid April to mid October: 27 weeks in all.
The planner's own design check: 10 Excellent, 5 Good, 2 Satisfactory. It flags one thing to watch: Creeping lilyturf spreads aggressively. Each plant's details say more.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where creeping lilyturf goes in a border
At 12 in it belongs at the front of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is low (6 to 12 in).
Its job: carpet. A groundcover planted in threes and fives to cover the soil: along the front, and just behind it.
Use it only where it can be allowed to fill the whole space: it is too invasive for a mixed bed, where it will run through its neighbours. For edging, choose the clump-forming lilyturf.
- Erosion control on slopes
- Groundcover under trees where nothing else grows
- Contained areas between paving
What to plant with creeping lilyturf
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Hosta: bold leaves against its fine ones; a low mound at the foot of its spires.
- Solomon's seal: adds the flowers, early May to late May; tall enough (3 ft) to stand behind it.
- Christmas fern: tall enough (20 in) to stand behind it.
Questions about creeping lilyturf
Does creeping lilyturf need sun or shade?
Creeping lilyturf grows in part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun), part shade (2 to 4 hours of sun, mostly in the morning) and shade (less than 2 hours of direct sun, or bright dappled light). It is one of the few that also put up with deep shade.
It wants ordinary well-drained soil, of average fertility, and little watering once settled. Once settled in, it stands drought.
What zones does creeping lilyturf grow in?
USDA zones 4 to 10. It is hardy to zone 4, which means it survives winter nights down to about −20 °F (−29 °C).
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
How far apart should creeping lilyturf be planted?
12 in (30 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 24 in (60 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 12 in (30 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many creeping lilyturf plants do I need?
At 12 in apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 12 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 11 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 38 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own
In a mixed border, plant it as threes and fives, along the front and just behind it.
In the bed above, the planner used eight in two groups.
Is creeping lilyturf poisonous to dogs and cats?
No toxicity is recorded for dogs, cats, horses or people, according to NC State Extension.
"Not toxic" is not "edible": a pet that eats a lot of any plant can be sick.
Is there a native plant like creeping lilyturf?
Creeping lilyturf comes from China and Vietnam. These North American natives come closest to doing its job:
- Mayapple: the same job in a bed; 4 in taller, bold leaves, not fine.
- Pennsylvania sedge: the same job in a bed; 4 in shorter, 4 in narrower.
- New York fern: the same job in a bed; 6 in taller, not evergreen.
Matched the way the planner's Swap button matches plants: the same job in a bed, then size, then flowering time.
Do deer eat creeping lilyturf?
Mostly not. NC State lists it as resistant to deer and rabbits. No plant is proof against a hungry deer in a hard winter, but this one is low on the menu.
Will creeping lilyturf spread?
It spreads sideways, by runners or roots; the risk of it taking over is high. Spreads aggressively by underground runners and is hard to remove once established. It has escaped into woodland in parts of the Southeast. Plant it only where paving or a deep edge contains it.
What does creeping lilyturf look like in winter?
Creeping lilyturf keeps its dark green leaves all winter, so it is one of the plants that hold a bed together from November to March, when the perennials have gone.
More Liriope
- Lilyturf Liriope muscari
- Variegated lilyturf Liriope muscari 'Variegata'
In these guides
- Plants for dry shade
- Plants for deep shade
- Salt-tolerant plants for roadsides and coasts
- Plants you can walk on
- Deer-resistant plants for shade
- Rabbit-resistant plants
- Pet-safe plants for shade
- Low plants for the front of a border
- Groundcover plants
- Evergreen perennials, ferns and grasses
- Plants with spires: vertical accents
Zone guides: Zone 4 · Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7 · Zone 8 · Zone 9
Every fact on record
- Type
- Perennial
- Size
- 12 in (30 cm) tall, 24 in (60 cm) wide
- Plant
- 12 in (30 cm) apart
- Height class
- Low (6 to 12 in)
- Place in the bed
- Front
- Flowers
- Early August to early September; upright spires; lavender
- Leaves
- Fine texture, evergreen; dark green
- Shape
- Arching, spreading
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 4 to 10
- Light
- Part sun, part shade, shade
- Soil
- Average, well-drained
- Water
- Low
- Feeding
- None needed
- Family
- Asparagaceae
- Comes from
- China and Vietnam
- Stands up to
- Deer, rabbits, drought, heat, salt, deep shade, pollution, foot traffic
Checked against NC State Extension. Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.