Dichondra repens Seeds | Dichondra
LATIN NAME: Dichondra repens
COMMON NAME: Dichondra
Plant Profile
Known to gardeners as Dichondra, Dichondra repens is a perennial in the morning-glory family. It is a plant of open, sunny, deep, moist, well-drained ground. Bees find the flowers quickly, and that pollinator traffic is a garden benefit in its own right. In combination, these characteristics make a persuasive case for growing it.
Science & Biotechnology
Within the morning-glory family, Dichondra repens is of continuing interest to researchers working on plant diversity, seed biology and the selection of improved garden forms. The practical point for growers is that this plant has been observed in gardens for so long that its behaviour holds few surprises.
Uses & Benefits
Gardeners value Dichondra for its ornamental character, and the plant also fits naturally into herb, vegetable and cutting gardens. Dichondra is a fine, neat plant of warm garden and study collection. It is a fine, neat plant of open, sunny, deep, moist, well-drained garden. Give young plants deep, moist bed, and silver mats will spread over warm months. After the first season it asks for very little beyond a place that suits it.
Dichondra is a lawn-alternative groundcover; in Chinese folk medicine the small kidney-shaped leaves appear in herbals for jaundice and stones.
Growing from Seed
Dichondra grows readily from seed. Use a fine, free-draining seed compost, scatter the seed evenly, cover it lightly and hold it just moist in good light. Prick the seedlings out once they are large enough to handle, grow them on in bright light, and plant out when conditions allow.
Our Take
It forms a perennial, which makes spacing and siting straightforward. Dichondra settles in quickly once it finds its footing. Once the young plants are away, there is little left to do but watch them grow.
Related Reading
Readers interested in Dichondra frequently explore these as well: