Yellow flowering perennial ground covers are low-growing plants that spread to create dense, carpet-like layers in gardens, offering bright, cheerful blooms. Their vibrant yellow flowers, ranging from soft lemon to bold gold, add warmth and visual interest to landscapes, typically blooming in spring or summer. These perennials return year after year, making them a reliable choice for gardeners seeking low-maintenance solutions that combine beauty with functionality, such as weed suppression and soil stabilization.
These ground covers adapt to a variety of growing conditions, thriving in full sun to partial shade and tolerating different soil types, from sandy to loamy, as long as drainage is adequate. Some are drought-tolerant, ideal for dry or rocky areas, while others prefer moist environments, suiting rain gardens or borders. Their versatility allows them to fit seamlessly into diverse settings, including slopes, rock gardens, or as edging along pathways.
The yellow blooms of these perennials often attract pollinators like bees and butterflies, enhancing garden biodiversity. The flowers may appear as clusters, single blooms, or delicate sprays, adding texture and contrast to green foliage. Many varieties have evergreen or semi-evergreen leaves, ensuring year-round coverage and interest, even when the flowering season ends, making them valuable for both ornamental and practical purposes.
Care for these ground covers is typically minimal once established. Regular watering during their first season promotes strong root development, but many become self-sufficient afterward, requiring little attention. Light pruning or trimming after blooming can maintain a tidy appearance and encourage denser growth. Gardeners should monitor for aggressive spreading in some varieties to prevent them from crowding out neighboring plants.
Incorporating yellow flowering perennial ground covers into landscapes creates a sunny, inviting aesthetic. They can soften hard edges, spill over walls, or fill gaps in mixed beds, adding cohesion to garden designs. By choosing varieties suited to local climate and soil conditions, gardeners can achieve a vibrant, low-maintenance carpet of yellow blooms that brightens outdoor spaces year after year.
Ground Covers With Yellow Flowers
Creeping Buttercup (Ranunculus repens)
- Description: Spreading perennial (4-8 inches) with glossy yellow flowers in spring to summer and heart-shaped leaves.
- Conditions: Full sun to partial shade, moist soil. Can be invasive.
- Uses: Wet areas, pond edges, ground cover for damp sites.
Golden Groundsel (Packera aurea)
- Description: Clumping perennial (6-12 inches) with clusters of daisy-like yellow flowers in spring.
- Conditions: Partial shade to full sun, moist, well-drained soil.
- Uses: Woodland gardens, shady borders, naturalized areas.
Yellow Star Grass (Hypoxis hirsuta)
- Description: Grass-like perennial (4-6 inches) with star-shaped yellow flowers in spring to early summer.
- Conditions: Full sun to partial shade, well-drained soil.
- Uses: Rock gardens, meadow gardens, borders.
Creeping Avens ‘Geum Borisii’ (Geum borisii)
- Description: Compact (6-8 inches) with vibrant yellow-orange flowers in late spring to summer.
- Conditions: Full sun, well-drained soil. Moderately drought-tolerant.
- Uses: Rock gardens, edging, small spaces.
Golden Creeping Thyme (Thymus citriodorus ‘Aureus’)
- Description: Aromatic ground cover (2-4 inches) with tiny yellow flowers and golden-green foliage in summer.
- Conditions: Full sun, well-drained soil. Drought-tolerant.
- Uses: Pathways, herb gardens, rockeries.
Yellow Rock Rose (Helianthemum nummularium)
- Description: Low-growing (6-8 inches) with bright yellow, rose-like flowers in summer and evergreen foliage.
- Conditions: Full sun, well-drained, sandy soil. Drought-tolerant.
- Uses: Rock gardens, slopes, xeriscaping.
Creeping Snapdragon (Antirrhinum asarina)
- Description: Trailing perennial (4-6 inches) with small, yellow snapdragon-like flowers in summer.
- Conditions: Full sun to partial shade, well-drained soil.
- Uses: Hanging baskets, walls, rock gardens.
Golden Moss Stonecrop (Sedum acre)
- Description: Succulent ground cover (2-3 inches) with star-shaped yellow flowers in early summer.
- Conditions: Full sun, well-drained, poor soil. Highly drought-tolerant.
- Uses: Rock gardens, green roofs, between pavers.
Yellow Loosestrife (Lysimachia vulgaris)
- Description: Spreading perennial (12-18 inches) with clusters of yellow flowers in summer.
- Conditions: Full sun to partial shade, moist to wet soil. Can be invasive.
- Uses: Wetland gardens, pond margins, large areas.
Creeping Wood Sorrel (Oxalis corniculata)
- Description: Low-growing (3-6 inches) with clover-like leaves and small yellow flowers in spring to fall.
- Conditions: Full sun to partial shade, well-drained soil.
- Uses: Borders, containers, ground cover for small areas.
Golden Creeping Veronica (Veronica repens ‘Sunshine’)
- Description: Mat-forming (2-4 inches) with tiny yellow flowers in spring and golden foliage.
- Conditions: Full sun to partial shade, well-drained soil.
- Uses: Rock gardens, edging, lawn substitute.
Yellow Fumitory (Fumaria officinalis)
- Description: Delicate perennial (6-12 inches) with tubular yellow flowers in spring to summer.
- Conditions: Partial shade, moist, well-drained soil.
- Uses: Woodland gardens, shady borders, naturalized areas.
Golden Cinquefoil (Potentilla simplex)
- Description: Spreading (4-6 inches) with bright yellow, five-petaled flowers in early summer.
- Conditions: Full sun, well-drained soil. Drought-tolerant.
- Uses: Rock gardens, slopes, borders.
Creeping Barberry (Berberis repens)
- Description: Evergreen ground cover (6-12 inches) with yellow flowers in spring and holly-like leaves.
- Conditions: Full sun to partial shade, well-drained soil. Drought-tolerant.
- Uses: Slopes, xeriscaping, under trees.
Yellow Sundrops (Oenothera fruticosa)
- Description: Clumping perennial (6-12 inches) with bright yellow, cup-shaped flowers in summer.
- Conditions: Full sun, well-drained soil. Drought-tolerant.
- Uses: Borders, meadow gardens, pollinator-friendly areas.
Creeping Jenny (Lysimachia nummularia)
- Description: Trailing perennial (2-4 inches) with bright yellow, cup-shaped flowers in summer and round green leaves.
- Conditions: Full sun to partial shade, moist, well-drained soil. Can tolerate wet areas.
- Uses: Borders, pond edges, hanging baskets. Can be invasive.
Yellow Archangel (Lamium galeobdolon)
- Description: Spreading perennial (6-12 inches) with yellow flowers in spring and variegated silver-green foliage.
- Conditions: Partial to full shade, moist, well-drained soil.
- Uses: Shady areas, woodland gardens, under trees.
Barren Strawberry (Waldsteinia ternata)
- Description: Evergreen ground cover (4-6 inches) with yellow, strawberry-like flowers in spring and glossy green leaves.
- Conditions: Full sun to partial shade, well-drained soil.
- Uses: Rock gardens, borders, lawn substitute.
Creeping Potentilla (Potentilla neumanniana)
- Description: Low-growing (3-6 inches) with bright yellow, buttercup-like flowers in spring to summer.
- Conditions: Full sun, well-drained soil. Drought-tolerant.
- Uses: Rock gardens, slopes, edging.
Yellow Alyssum (Aurinia saxatilis)
- Description: Mat-forming perennial (6-12 inches) with clusters of bright yellow flowers in spring and gray-green foliage.
- Conditions: Full sun, well-drained, sandy soil. Drought-tolerant.
- Uses: Rock gardens, walls, xeriscaping.
Creeping Sedum (Sedum spurium)
- Description: Succulent ground cover (3-6 inches) with yellow star-shaped flowers in summer and fleshy leaves.
- Conditions: Full sun, well-drained soil. Highly drought-tolerant.
- Uses: Rock gardens, dry slopes, containers.
Golden Creeping Zinnia (Zinnia grandiflora)
- Description: Low-growing (3-6 inches) with small, golden-yellow flowers from summer to fall.
- Conditions: Full sun, dry, well-drained soil. Drought-tolerant.
- Uses: Xeriscaping, rock gardens, borders.
Yellow Ice Plant (Delosperma nubigenum)
- Description: Succulent perennial (2-4 inches) with daisy-like yellow flowers in late spring to summer.
- Conditions: Full sun, sandy, well-drained soil. Drought-tolerant.
- Uses: Rock gardens, slopes, dry areas.
Creeping St. John’s Wort (Hypericum calycinum)
- Description: Semi-evergreen (8-12 inches) with large, golden-yellow flowers in summer.
- Conditions: Full sun to partial shade, well-drained soil. Tolerates poor soil.
- Uses: Slopes, banks, large areas. Can be invasive.
Yellow Corydalis (Corydalis lutea)
- Description: Delicate perennial (6-12 inches) with clusters of tubular yellow flowers from spring to fall.
- Conditions: Partial shade, moist, well-drained soil.
- Uses: Shady borders, rock gardens, woodland areas.
Dwarf Cinquefoil (Potentilla aurea)
- Description: Compact (4-6 inches) with bright yellow, five-petaled flowers in early summer.
- Conditions: Full sun, well-drained soil. Drought-tolerant.
- Uses: Rock gardens, edging, alpine gardens.
Golden Moneywort (Lysimachia punctata)
- Description: Spreading perennial (6-12 inches) with star-shaped yellow flowers in summer.
- Conditions: Full sun to partial shade, moist soil.
- Uses: Borders, wet areas, ground cover for large spaces.
Yellow Lady’s Mantle (Alchemilla mollis)
- Description: Clumping ground cover (6-12 inches) with frothy yellow-green flowers in summer and scalloped leaves.
- Conditions: Full sun to partial shade, moist, well-drained soil.
- Uses: Borders, cottage gardens, edging.
Creeping Avens (Geum reptans)
- Description: Low-growing (4-6 inches) with bright yellow flowers in early summer and strawberry-like foliage.
- Conditions: Full sun to partial shade, well-drained soil.
- Uses: Rock gardens, alpine areas, borders.
Yellow Stonecrop (Sedum reflexum)
- Description: Succulent ground cover (4-8 inches) with yellow flower clusters in summer and needle-like leaves.
- Conditions: Full sun, well-drained, poor soil. Drought-tolerant.
- Uses: Rock gardens, walls, containers.
General Care Tips
- Watering: Water regularly during establishment; many are drought-tolerant once settled, but some prefer consistent moisture.
- Pruning: Trim after flowering to maintain shape and promote denser growth.
- Invasiveness: Monitor aggressive spreaders to prevent them from overtaking other plants.
- Soil: Most prefer well-drained soil; some tolerate poor or sandy conditions.
- Sunlight: Many thrive in full sun, but several adapt to partial shade.
- Check USDA hardiness zones (most are hardy in zones 4-8, some to zone 9).
- Many attract pollinators, enhancing garden ecosystems.
- Pair with contrasting ground covers like purple-flowered varieties or low grasses for visual appeal.