Photo Credit: Gerald Klingaman

Lilyturf is known throughout the South as an attractive evergreen groundcover with cheery blue-purple flowers in late summer.

Few plants epitomize the Southern landscape more than the Southern magnolia, crapemyrtle and Lirope (Liriope muscari). Even before Southern Living magazine became the style guide for the quintessential “Southern look,” Liriope was popular. We see it everywhere – here as a groundcover, there bordering a walkway and over yonder edging a flower bed. Southern gardeners just can’t get enough of this tough, reliable plant. In fact, it’s used so often for edging that one of its common names is “edging grass.”

Also called “lilyturf” or “monkeygrass,” the truth is Liriope isn’t a grass at all – it’s a member of the lily family. There are several look-alike plants, including the fast-spreading L. spicata (creeping lilyturf). But regular lilyturf is the largest of these. In fact, it typically grows 12-18 inches tall – all from half-inch-wide leaves that push from fleshy underground roots.

Photo Credit: Gerald Klingaman

Clumps of variegated lilyturf can really brighten up a shady border.

Lilyturf is well-behaved in the garden and tends to stay put, with clumps slowly increasing in size. Come August, plants send up spikes of blue flowers above the foliage that resemble the blue blooms of grape hyacinth (hence the species name “muscari”). White-flowered forms are also available. (L. spicata also blooms in August, but it tends to keep its flowers hidden down in the foliage, and the color is a washed-out whitish-blue.)

Relatively little has been written about this plant in garden books, primarily because Yankee garden writers just don’t understand Southerners’ love affair with lilyturf. This species is hardy to >USDA hardiness Zone 6 in the North, while the creeping lilyturf is hardy to Zone 4 – but both do better deeper south. Just like alligators and mosquitoes, Liriope likes it hot and humid.

Photo Credit: Gerald Klingaman

For a good, noninvasive evergreen groundcover, try Liriope muscari.

Because of its clump-forming nature, lilyturf is a natural as an edging plant or groundcover. Divisions should be planted on 12-inch centers. It typically takes about two years for clumps to more or less grow together.

While lilyturf does best in moderate shade, it will grow in either full sun or heavy shade (but expect fewer flowers in dense shade). Unfortunately, Bermuda grass has a bad habit of invading liriope plantings when planted in the sun. But selective grass herbicides will kill the Bermuda grass without affecting your lilyturf.

If you’d like to divide your plants, early spring is probably the best time to do it – but the plant’s tough enough thatit can be divided at about any season so long as it can be watered. Once established, lilyturf is tolerant of drought and cold. It doesn’t seem to have any serious disease or insect problems either.