Sweet Alyssum Uses in Landscape

Characteristics

• Sweet alyssum reaches about 6 inches tall and rapidly spreads to form a clump 1 foot wide. Its sweet-smelling blooms, which come in white, rose, lavender, purple and pale yellow, are borne in clusters of tiny blossoms on short, thin stems. It has gray-green, lance-shaped leaves and flowers continuously from May through September.

Planting and Care

• Alyssum prefers full sun but also grows in partial sun. It is drought tolerant and heat resistant once established. Like most garden plants, alyssum needs good drainage, so amend the planting area with an equal part of compost to soil. Sow seeds in spring, after the ground has warmed to 55 F. For transplants, water regularly until you see new growth, and then water when the soil is dry. Shear the plants back in midsummer if they look scruffy.

Landscape Containers

• In mixed container plantings, alyssum makes a good "spiller" plant, mounding up and over the edge of a pot, window box or other container, and providing nonstop summer bloom. In hanging baskets, it weaves around and between its companion plants and is sometimes planted through the smaller holes in the sides of hanging baskets, to hang downward. It is a favorite of pollinating insects, so placing a flowering container near plants that need bees to visit might help attract them.

Garden Uses

• Alyssum makes a pretty, flowering ground cover. It reseeds between pavers and comes up each year to add fragrance to a stone patio or path. Beneficial insects tend to prefer tiny blossoms, so use alyssum to attract them to the vegetable and fruit areas of your garden by planting it as an edging or under fruit trees. Alyssum is also useful in rock gardens, where it can spill over an edge, or as a ground cover under roses. Because deer don't like alyssum, use it as a "protector plant" around plants they find more palatable.