ground cover
- noun
- /ˈɡraʊnd ˈkʌvər/
- Many gardeners choose creeping thyme as a ground cover because it is low-maintenance.
Or the way the tree trunks lay in the northern woods, leafless, then save for the ground cover.
- Or the way the tree trunks lay in the northern woods, leafless, then save for the ground cover.
- Great for bulbs, annuals, vegetables, ground cover, lawn plugs and wedding.
- Low lying ground cover, lots of shade, decent amount of moisture.
- If you have things like, Oh my goodness, I don't know, Clover, Clover is considered a ground cover weed.
Examples
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In the open spaces, there was a ground cover of ferns, saplings, and pineapple-shrub cycadeoids.
Fiction book (2002) -
Years of drought and poor agricultural practices had stripped the earth of natural ground cover that held the soil in place.
Academic text (2003) -
And with many of these ground covers, they spread quite readily.
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The plant was originally brought into the United States from Asia as cattle feed and ground cover.
Academic text (1996) -
We knew from the start that the ground cover did not meet the manufacturer's recommendations.
Academic text (2000) -
As the ground cover was lost, the soil became much more susceptible to erosion by wind and water.
Academic text (2000) -
All of the ground covers for the chosen hedges were soil, lawn, or other soft materials.
Academic text (2010) -
Patches of horseherb, dotted with tiny yellow flowers, also serve as ground cover in shady spots.
Blog text (1) -
When I first moved to Memphis, the new pollen and unfamiliar ground cover assaulted my sinuses.
Blog text (15) -
Squash is then planted on the same plot and the squash then has very big leaves and forms a ground cover which protects the grounds from weeds growing.
Synonyms
A low plant that spreads to cover the ground and stop soil from washing away
How Dense
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a low-growing plant that spreads over and covers the soil' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'ground' (soil) with 'cover' (something that covers). This noun–noun compounding pattern is productive and cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
The compound noun ground cover comes from the simple image of low plants that cover the ground like a green carpet. That's why it means low, spreading plants used to 'protect' the soil and keep it covered.