Looking to add a splash of bold, beautiful color to your garden without the high maintenance? Our gardener swears by these 18 purple flowering ground covers to turn bland spaces into breathtaking landscapes.
They’re hardy, low-growing, and absolutely stunning—perfect for creating a colorful carpet in your yard with minimal effort.
1. Creeping Thyme
Walking on creeping thyme releases a wonderful aromatic scent that delights the senses. This tough little plant forms a dense mat of tiny leaves topped with clusters of purple flowers that bees absolutely adore.
Growing just 2-4 inches tall, it’s perfect between stepping stones or as a lawn substitute in small areas. Drought-tolerant once established, creeping thyme handles light foot traffic and stays attractive through summer heat.
2. Ajuga (Bugleweed)
Hardy and vigorous, Ajuga quickly forms a thick carpet of glossy, dark leaves with stunning spikes of purple-blue flowers in spring. The dramatic foliage often shows burgundy, bronze, or chocolate tones that add interest even when not blooming.
Shade-loving by nature, this resilient ground cover thrives where grass struggles. Deer and rabbits typically avoid it, making it perfect for problem areas. Ajuga spreads enthusiastically, so give it room or use barriers to contain its growth.
3. Purple Mazus
Imagine a living carpet that hugs the ground and erupts with tiny orchid-like purple blooms in spring! Purple Mazus creates exactly this magical effect, growing just 1-2 inches tall but spreading to form dense mats. Soft enough to walk on occasionally, this ground cover thrives in moist areas with partial shade. The delicate flowers appear in abundance from late spring to early summer, creating a stunning display. Mazus remains semi-evergreen in milder climates, providing year-round interest.
4. Verbena ‘Homestead Purple’
Sun-loving and drought-resistant, ‘Homestead Purple’ verbena rewards gardeners with waves of rich purple blooms from spring until frost. The flowers form clusters that seem to float above the dense, spreading foliage.
Butterflies can’t resist this vibrant plant, making it a wildlife-friendly choice. Growing 6-12 inches tall with a spread of 3-4 feet, it quickly fills spaces along borders or slopes. The semi-woody stems help it bounce back year after year in warmer zones.
5. Sweet Woodruff
Dappled shade gardens transform into enchanted spaces with sweet woodruff’s star-shaped leaves and delicate lavender-purple flowers. Medieval gardeners treasured this herb for its vanilla-hay fragrance when dried.
Forming a 6-8 inch tall carpet, sweet woodruff spreads slowly but steadily in woodland settings. The whorled foliage creates an attractive backdrop even when the plant isn’t flowering in spring. Once established, it requires almost no maintenance and even grows well under trees.
6. Purple Ice Plant
Succulent leaves that sparkle like they’re covered in ice crystals give this ground cover its distinctive name. When purple ice plant blooms, it creates a dazzling carpet of vibrant magenta-purple daisy-like flowers that open in sunshine and close at night.
Perfect for hot, dry spots and poor soils where other plants struggle. The fleshy leaves store water, making it extremely drought-tolerant once established. Growing just 3-6 inches tall but spreading up to 2 feet, it’s ideal for rock gardens, slopes, and containers.
7. Wild Creeping Phlox
Spring brings an avalanche of purple, star-shaped blooms that completely cover the needle-like foliage of creeping phlox. The effect is so dramatic that the plant itself seems to disappear beneath the floral display.
Tough and adaptable, creeping phlox cascades beautifully over walls or slopes. Growing just 4-6 inches tall but spreading up to 2 feet wide, it forms a dense mat that suppresses weeds. After flowering, the evergreen foliage continues providing texture and interest throughout the year.
8. Campanula (Bellflower)
Bell-shaped purple flowers dancing on delicate stems make campanula a cottage garden favorite. Several low-growing varieties form excellent ground covers, creating pools of violet-blue color throughout summer.
Campanula portenschlagiana (Dalmatian Bellflower) is particularly effective, forming neat 6-inch mounds
that spread gradually. The profuse blooms appear above a compact mat of rounded leaves. Plant in groups for the best effect, especially along pathways where their charming flowers can be appreciated up close.
9. Vinca Minor (Periwinkle)
Glossy, evergreen leaves form a backdrop for the periwinkle’s distinctive pinwheel-shaped purple-blue flowers. This classic ground cover performs beautifully in those challenging spots where grass won’t grow and other plants struggle.
Especially valuable under trees and in shade, vinca’s trailing stems root as they touch the ground, creating a dense mat that effectively suppresses weeds. The pretty blooms appear mainly in spring with sporadic flowering throughout summer. Once established, it requires almost no maintenance.
10. Aubrieta (Rock Cress)
Cascades of vibrant purple completely smother the foliage of aubrieta in spring, creating breathtaking displays. This European native thrives in rock gardens, tumbling over walls, or spilling from containers with carefree abandon.
Growing just 4-6 inches tall but spreading up to 2 feet, aubrieta forms tight cushions of semi-evergreen foliage. The four-petaled flowers appear in such profusion that you can barely see the leaves beneath. After flowering, trim back lightly to maintain its neat habit and encourage fresh growth.
11. Geranium ‘Rozanne’
Voted Plant of the Centenary by the Royal Horticultural Society, ‘Rozanne’ geranium produces a seemingly endless display of large violet-blue flowers with white centers. Unlike many perennials that bloom briefly, this superstar flowers from late spring until frost.
Growing 18-20 inches tall with a sprawling habit, it’s taller than typical ground covers but works beautifully to fill spaces between shrubs. The deeply-cut foliage turns reddish in fall, adding another season of interest. Heat-tolerant and relatively drought-resistant once established.
12. Lamium (Dead Nettle)
Silver-splashed leaves create year-round interest even when lamium isn’t showing off its clusters of purple hooded flowers. This shade-loving ground cover brightens dark corners with its variegated foliage. Fast-growing but not aggressive, lamium reaches 6-8 inches tall while spreading to form a weed-suppressing mat.
The purple blooms appear mainly in spring with repeat performances throughout summer. Deer and rabbits typically leave it alone, making it perfect for woodland gardens and shaded borders.
13. Lavender
Famous for its fragrance and versatility, lavender varieties like ‘Munstead’ and ‘Hidcote’ make excellent low-growing ground covers for sunny spots.
The gray-green foliage forms attractive mounds topped with purple flower spikes that attract bees and butterflies. Growing 12-18 inches tall and wide, lavender needs good drainage and air circulation to thrive.
Plant in groups for maximum impact, especially along pathways where brushing against the leaves releases their calming scent. Prune after flowering to maintain a compact shape and encourage repeat blooming.
14. Nepeta (Catmint)
Clouds of lavender-blue flowers hover above aromatic gray-green foliage, creating a soft, billowing effect in the garden. Nepeta varieties like ‘Walker’s Low’ form excellent ground covers, combining drought tolerance with long-lasting color.
Growing 12-15 inches tall and spreading up to 3 feet, catmint creates a beautiful haze of purple from late spring through summer. Simply shear back after the first flush of bloom to encourage a second display. Cats may roll in it, but deer and rabbits typically stay away.
15. Lithodora
Intensely blue-purple star-shaped flowers that seem almost too vibrant to be real make lithodora a standout ground cover. The small, narrow leaves form a dense evergreen mat that sets off the electric-colored blooms perfectly.
Growing just 6-12 inches tall but spreading up to 3 feet wide, lithodora looks stunning cascading over walls or rockeries. The heaviest flowering occurs in spring, but sporadic blooms continue through summer in cooler climates. Provide good drainage and avoid waterlogged conditions for best results.
16. Dwarf Iris
Early spring gardens light up with the jewel-like blooms of dwarf iris varieties in shades of purple, violet, and lavender. Unlike their taller cousins, these compact beauties grow just 4-6 inches tall, making them perfect as flowering ground covers.
Plant the rhizomes in groups for the most dramatic effect, especially in rock gardens or along borders. The sword-shaped leaves remain attractive after flowering, providing structure and texture. Most varieties spread slowly over time, gradually forming larger colonies that require minimal care.
17. Viola (Johnny Jump-ups)
Cheerful purple and yellow faces of Johnny Jump-ups bring smiles to garden visitors from early spring through fall. These diminutive relatives of pansies seed themselves about the garden, creating delightful purple patches wherever conditions suit them.
Growing just 4-6 inches tall, violas form loose mats of heart-shaped leaves topped with countless blooms. They perform best in cooler weather, often taking a break during summer’s heat before returning for an encore in fall. The edible flowers make charming decorations for salads and desserts.
18. Lungwort (Pulmonaria)
Spotted silver leaves create year-round interest, while clusters of bell-shaped flowers that change from pink to purple as they mature add spring charm to shady spots.
Lungwort gets its unusual name from medieval herbalists who thought the spotted leaves resembled diseased lungs. Growing 8-12 inches tall and spreading slowly, pulmonaria performs beautifully in woodland gardens.
The flowers appear in early spring before many other perennials wake up. Deer-resistant and low-maintenance, it’s a reliable performer that thrives in conditions where many plants struggle.