Mazus
Mazus reptans · Scrophulariaceae
A flat, bright green mat covered in small lavender, snapdragon-like flowers with spotted lips in late spring. It takes light foot traffic.
- Size
- 2 in tall, 16 in wide
- Zones
- 5 to 8
- Light
- Full sun to part shade
- Flowers
- Early May to mid June
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Carpet
A bed built around mazus
The planner designed this bed around mazus when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) English border in zone 6, part sun. It chose the other plants from the 708 that suit those conditions, and says below why mazus stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Mazus × 19, lavender
- 2 Coral bells 'Firefly' × 11, red
- 3 Turtlehead 'Hot Lips' × 3, pink
- 4 Garden phlox 'David' × 3, white
- 5 Arborvitae 'Mr. Bowling Ball' × 1, grey-green leaves
- 6 Hellebore 'Pink Frost' × 3, pink
- 7 Grecian windflower × 10, blue
Why this plant
- The only lavender.
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.
- 19 plants in 5 groups (5, 5, 3, 3 and 3). Seen again further along, the same plant ties the bed together.
- Fine leaf against bold. Hellebore 'Pink Frost' is beside it: the strongest contrast of leaf there is.
Why now
- In flower for six weeks. From early May to mid June.
- Fills a gap. For three of those weeks nothing else on the plan is in flower.
Planned as an English border: 7 of the 7 groups (100%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. The bed is balanced: the left half carries 47% of the visual weight and the right half 53%. Cool colours (lavender, pink and blue) with red as the warm note, and white to calm things between them.
The planner's own design check: 13 Excellent, 4 Good. It flags one thing to watch: Nothing on this plan is highly poisonous or an aggressive spreader.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where mazus goes in a border
At 2 in it belongs at the front of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is ground-hugging (up to 6 in).
Its job: carpet. A groundcover planted in threes and fives to cover the soil: along the front, and just behind it.
One of the lowest and quickest carpets for moist soil, dense enough to keep out weeds. It will creep into a lawn, so give it an edge.
- Between stepping stones
- Groundcover over small bulbs
- Moist edges of paths and ponds
What to plant with mazus
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Irish moss: in flower together for five weeks, from mid May; low enough (1 in) to stand in front of it; happy in the same moist soil.
- Blue star creeper: in flower together for four weeks, from late May; tall enough (3 in) to stand behind it; happy in the same moist soil.
- Hosta 'Blue Mouse Ears': its blue-green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; spires rising out of its mound; tall enough (8 in) to stand behind it.
Questions about mazus
Does mazus need sun or shade?
Mazus grows in full sun (6 or more hours of direct sun a day), part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun) and part shade (2 to 4 hours of sun, mostly in the morning).
It wants soil that stays evenly moist, of average fertility, and a good soak in dry spells. It copes with soil that stays wet.
What zones does mazus grow in?
USDA zones 5 to 8. It is hardy to zone 5, which means it survives winter nights down to about −10 °F (−23 °C).
Above zone 8 it struggles: the zones measure winter cold, but a plant's top zone usually means the summers are too hot or the winters too mild for it to rest.
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does mazus flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers early May to mid June. As a spring flower it moves about a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer, later where it is colder.
| Zone 5 | Early May to mid June |
|---|---|
| Zone 6 | Early May to mid June |
| Zone 7 | Late April to early June |
| Zone 8 | Mid April to early June |
Worked out from Hopkins' bioclimatic law: spring arrives about four days later for each degree of latitude north, and one zone is roughly two degrees. A warm spring or a cold one moves any garden two weeks either way.
How far apart should mazus 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 16 in (40 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 2 in (5 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many mazus 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 19 in five groups.
Is mazus 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 mazus?
Mazus comes from Temperate East Asia and the Himalayas. These North American natives come closest to doing its job:
- Green-and-gold: the same job in a bed and the same flowering time; 4 in taller, yellow, not lavender.
- Robin's plantain 'Lynnhaven Carpet': the same job in a bed, the same flowering time and the same colour; 4 in taller, medium leaves, not fine.
- Creeping woodland phlox: the same job in a bed and the same colour; 6 in taller, flowers late April to late May.
Matched the way the planner's Swap button matches plants: the same job in a bed, then size, then flowering time.
Do deer eat mazus?
They may. NC State does not list it as resistant to deer or rabbits. Where they visit, protect it, or plant it among ones they avoid.
Will mazus spread?
It spreads sideways, by runners or roots; the risk of it taking over is moderate. Spreads steadily by creeping stems. It is easy to pull out, but needs a firm edge.
What flowers after mazus?
Mazus is over by mid June. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Creeping thyme: from early June to mid July, 3 in tall.
- Astilbe: from late June to mid July, 24 in tall.
- Black-eyed Susan: from mid July to mid September, 24 in tall.
What does mazus look like in winter?
Mazus holds some of its leaves into winter, more in a mild year or a sheltered spot, and they look tired by March. Cut the old ones off as new growth starts.
In these guides
- Plants for wet soil and rain gardens
- Plants you can walk on
- Pet-safe plants for a sunny border
- Pet-safe plants for shade
- Low plants for the front of a border
- Groundcover plants
- Plants for a white garden
Every fact on record
- Type
- Perennial (groundcover)
- Size
- 2 in (5 cm) tall, 16 in (40 cm) wide
- Plant
- 12 in (30 cm) apart
- Height class
- Ground-hugging (up to 6 in)
- Place in the bed
- Front
- Flowers
- Early May to mid June; lavender, white
- Leaves
- Fine texture, semi-evergreen; green
- Shape
- Mat-forming, spreading
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 5 to 8
- Light
- Full sun, part sun, part shade
- Soil
- Average, evenly moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- None needed
- Family
- Scrophulariaceae
- Comes from
- Temperate East Asia and the Himalayas
- Stands up to
- Wet soil, 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.