Feathered Friends™ Fancy Finch Ajuga

Its evergreen, spreads to cover the ground and suppress weeds, and grows in nearly any sun exposure. What else can you love about Feathered Friends Fancy Finch Ajuga? How about its unique bronze color? This new perennial groundcover brings all the benefits of ajuga, or bugleweed, and a tricolor lime green/bronze/orange color combination that few plants can match. Ajuga will reach only about 3 to 4 inches high and each plant will spread to be nearly 18 inches around. Its also easy to care for and deer resistant. Be sure to plant your Fancy Finch Ajuga where you can enjoy its color all year. It can border a garden bed or walkway, or simply serve as a colorful weed blocker, especially in a shady woodland garden. The groundcover spreads to form a dense mat, coming back in spring in zones 4 through 8. Another fun feature of this tricolor ajuga is its response to shade or sunlight. If you grow it in mostly sun, its leaves stay more of a deep orange, but with some shade, it takes on a striking tricolor appearance. Feathered Friends Fancy Finch Ajuga Care A relative of mint, ajuga is a spreader. So be sure to avoid overcrowding the new plants. You might have to divide the ajuga every few years. Other than that, just cut the stems and foliage back to an inch or two above soil level after its spring flowers fade. Since this groundcover can grow in nearly any light exposure, your choice of shade or sun is a personal preference, but the plant will offer the most color variety if it receives about 4 hours of shade a day. Be sure to keep the soil slightly moist, especially in the first year. Apply a layer of mulch after planting to help hold in some moisture until the ajugas spread. Water consistently the first season, applying irrigation to the ground, not the leaves. Drip irrigation or a slow-running hose under the foliage works best. Start it off each spring with a balanced, slow-release fertilizer. Feathered Friends Fancy Finch Ajuga Spacing Your ajuga needs some air circulation. Avoid overcrowding it when planting, which means having to divide the plant sooner than youd like. About 16 inches apart should work.