How to Grow Japanese Spurge (Pachysandra Terminalis, Pachysandra Procumbens)

Japanese spurge is a low-maintenance ground cover that's ideal for shade. It features short spikes of white flowers followed by red berries. Japanese spurge thrives in USDA zones 5 to 9.

Difficulty:

Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Fertilizers
• Garden Hoses
• Garden Spades
• Mulch
• Plants
• Seeds
• Shovels

1. Look for plants at nurseries in spring and summer, or year-round in warmer climates.

2. Choose healthy-looking plants with signs of new growth in leaves and flower buds. Buy Japanese spurge in 4-inch to 1-gallon containers.

3. Choose a site in shade with well-drained soil.

4. Dig a hole for each plant no deeper than the plants were growing in the containers; space the holes 1 foot apart.

5. Add a light application of organic fertilizer to the planting holes before setting the plants in.

6. Mulch around but not on top of the plants with 3 inches of organic compost.

7. Water well until soil is completely moist, weekly during the first year and also in summers with no rainfall.

Tips & Warnings

• Japanese spurge grows about 1 foot high and spreads slowly by underground stems called rhizomes.

• A similar plant, Allegheny spurge (Pachysandra procumbens) is native to the eastern United States and is more evergreen.