The one with the broad, bright green leaves is the chickweed. The bittercress is the one in the middle with the pods sticking up above the flower. The leaves grow mainly as a basal rosette. Personally I wouldn't bother eating either of them!
How about a Bugle, Ajuga reptans, for ground cover? There are some lovely bronze-purple varieties, and it has spikes of blue flowers in the spring. A few plants would soon spread by runners to cover the area. It doesn't mind being trodden on when not in flower.
Now, you saying geranium, I have just remembered something:
I have these two different coloured geraniums in another part of the garden:
Are they G Macrorrhyzum by any chance? They have certainly done the job of keeping the weeds down in front of my ferns.
Could I just take cuttings?
If so, would it just be a question of taking bits off the existing roots? there seemed to be a very strong root base present when I cut the foliage back to the ground before the end of summer, because new foliage grew back beautifully within a week or two (although no second flush of flowers).
those are lovely and you can get new plants by dividing them - just dig them up and separate them into smaller clumps. They aren't macorhizzum - not sure what variety they are. They might prefer a bit more sun and it's likely to be shady under your apple tree. Geranium Macrorhizzum will grow just about anywhere but is particularly useful in shade where many plants struggle and as others have said, is really easy to manage.
you'd soon know if they were macrorhisum - usually pale pink flowers and the leaves have a very pungent smell and they spread by surface rhizomes. It comes into its own around this time as it has the most beautiful autumn foliage.
I also have hellebores around the base of an apple tree - they self seed prolifically and if you opt for ajuga (bugle) you could mix it with London Pride (I'm sure somebody else will remember it's latin name).
That's a very colourful display of what you have got - lovely.
Thankyou again folks for your advice and ideas. I shall now look around for where to buy Geranium Macrorrhizum. So far the various links on the Internet have been quite promising.
I might try a combination of them plus a few root divisions from the ones I pictured (photo, by the way, was taken in July 2013)
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Geranium macrorrhizum is good and easy to get out if you change your mind
In the sticks near Peterborough
The one with the broad, bright green leaves is the chickweed. The bittercress is the one in the middle with the pods sticking up above the flower. The leaves grow mainly as a basal rosette. Personally I wouldn't bother eating either of them!
How about a Bugle, Ajuga reptans, for ground cover? There are some lovely bronze-purple varieties, and it has spikes of blue flowers in the spring. A few plants would soon spread by runners to cover the area. It doesn't mind being trodden on when not in flower.
Just what I was going to say Nut
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I was going for G. macrorrhizum too - it would look good there.
Now, you saying geranium, I have just remembered something:
I have these two different coloured geraniums in another part of the garden:
Are they G Macrorrhyzum by any chance? They have certainly done the job of keeping the weeds down in front of my ferns.
Could I just take cuttings?
If so, would it just be a question of taking bits off the existing roots? there seemed to be a very strong root base present when I cut the foliage back to the ground before the end of summer, because new foliage grew back beautifully within a week or two (although no second flush of flowers).
those are lovely and you can get new plants by dividing them - just dig them up and separate them into smaller clumps. They aren't macorhizzum - not sure what variety they are. They might prefer a bit more sun and it's likely to be shady under your apple tree. Geranium Macrorhizzum will grow just about anywhere but is particularly useful in shade where many plants struggle and as others have said, is really easy to manage.
They're lovely but either of those are macrorrhizum Birdie.
The big advantage of macrorrhizum is that it's fairly evergreen. It thins out a bit towards the end of winter but never dies right back
In the sticks near Peterborough
you'd soon know if they were macrorhisum - usually pale pink flowers and the leaves have a very pungent smell and they spread by surface rhizomes. It comes into its own around this time as it has the most beautiful autumn foliage.
I also have hellebores around the base of an apple tree - they self seed prolifically and if you opt for ajuga (bugle) you could mix it with London Pride (I'm sure somebody else will remember it's latin name).
That's a very colourful display of what you have got - lovely.
Thankyou again folks
for your advice and ideas. I shall now look around for where to buy Geranium Macrorrhizum. So far the various links on the Internet have been quite promising.
I might try a combination of them plus a few root divisions from the ones I pictured (photo, by the way, was taken in July 2013)
I've also heard that alliums are good companion plants for fruit trees, and they look fab.