What Can I Plant to Fill in the Spaces Between My Flagstone Pavers?

Full Sun

• Sites with full sun exposure receive six or more hours of direct sunlight between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. in the summer months. Tiny Rubies dianthus (Dianthus gratianopolitanus) thrives in sunny sites and tolerates light foot traffic. This perennial grows up to 1 inch tall and blooms with pink flowers atop blue-green foliage. Tiny Green artemisia (Artemisia absinthium "Tiny Green") has light green foliage and produces small white flowers in spring. It tolerates light foot traffic and thrives in full sun and poor, dry soils.

Light Shade

• Lightly shaded sites receive four or five hours of direct sun or a shifting mix of shade and sun all day long. Victor Reiter armeria (Armeria maritima "Victor Reiter") forms 6-inch-tall spheres of tough, gray-green foliage. This perennial thrives in light shade and sandy, well-draining soil. It blooms with pink flowers in spring and summer and tolerates light foot traffic. Clumping or creeping baby's breath (Gypsophila repens) thrives in light shade and grows from 4 to 8 inches tall. It tolerates light foot traffic and grows rapidly into a dense mat. Clumping baby's breath blooms with tiny white flowers in spring and prefers very well-drained soil.

Partial Shade

• Sites in partial shade receive less than four hours of direct light or a constant, equal combination of sun and shade. Dwarf mondo grass (Ophiopogon japonicus "Nana") grows from 2 to 3 inches tall in dense clumps of fine, grasslike foliage. This slow-growing evergreen thrives in partial shade and tolerates moderate foot traffic. The dwarf yellow wallflower (Erysimum kotschyanum "Dwarf Yellow Wallflower") also grows well in partial shade and tolerates light foot traffic. It blooms with yellow blossoms in spring and has bright green foliage.

Full Shade

• Fully shaded sites receive no direct sunlight, though they may receive indirect or reflected light. Chocolate chip ajuga (Ajuga reptans "Chocolate Chip") thrives in full shade. This evergreen grows rapidly to 3 or 4 inches tall and has brown foliage offset by tiny, blue spring flowers. It tolerates moderate foot traffic and prefers well-drained, sandy soil. New Zealand brass buttons (Leptinella squalida) is another plant that grows well in shade. This 1-inch-tall ground cover spreads between pavers and produces fuzzy yellow flowers atop feathery, fern-like foliage that turns coppery-bronze in fall.