we use groundcover plants without a border so we can just mow over any that grow too far into the lawn...varieties of ivies are very hardy, cheap easy to establish from cuttings in our climate .. check with your local nursery for climate suitable options keeping in mind that under trees can also be very dry and still have a few weeds coming through until new plants are established in a generous layer of mulch

Sounds interesting, oklouise. Are you able to post a photo?

the under tree groundcover we used is for a previous house and i can't post a photo but why not start with some mulch over the bare areas and see how it looks.. there are many low ground covers that can still be walked on and include a sitting area and a climate that suits a big Nyssa will also be happy with ivies, mondo grass, cliveas etc etc

Thanks, oklouise. The only thing that concerns me is that the multitude of leaves that fall in autumn will completely cover the plantings, and I can't see how I could rake them up without destroying the plantings.

once the groundcovers are well established they can be raked over with a flexible rake and quickly recover and some of the fallen leaves will help with mulch..i guess the challenge is to prepare the site well and make sure that the new groundcovers are planted late say in Autumn with plenty of time to be well established before next autumn but i think that nothing looks better than a carpet of Autumn leaves with some crocus bulbs poking through and i was never in a hurry to rake all the leaves up at once

Yes, that's true, oklouise. I might give it a shot.

I have so many deciduous trees in our garden so millions of leaves, I used to rake them but then I invested in a Ryobi battery operated blower, it’s the most fabulous thing, you just blow the leaves into a pile and you don’t disturb the plants by taking, best investment ever and it’s done in a flash.mondo grass is a great ground cover, ajuga,hedera all tough ground covers, dwarf mondo is a favourite, the leaves just blow off the top of it.

julie herbert, Is that photo of the crazy paving from your garden, or just a stock image? Looks great! I love crazy paving.

No just a stock photo featuring mondo, our paving is old reds and I love crazy paving also, looks so natural, but if you can invest in the blower it’s a life saver for you and your plants, I bless the day I bought one.

as usual Julie finds the perfect photos to illustrate ideas and we also use a blower to collect leaves and they are excellent

Maybe you could add an agapantha or two. I have a lot of them flourishing under a 40 year old elm tree in Canberra. Their leaves are beautifully lush and they even grow long stems out to the sun for their flowers.