Green-and-gold is a cheerful, low-growing native that spangles a mat of soft green leaves with bright five-petaled gold stars. It opens its main flush in spring and then rebloms sporadically into fall, making it one of the longest-flowering native groundcovers for shade.
Where it grows in North Carolina
Found in rich woodlands and along shaded banks and woodland edges across the state. It spreads gently to form a loose, weed-suppressing carpet in the dappled light beneath deciduous trees.
Wildlife value
The early, accessible flowers offer nectar and pollen to small native bees and other pollinators at a lean time of year, when few woodland plants are yet in bloom.
In the garden
Use it as a front-of-border edger or groundcover in part to full shade with humusy, evenly moist soil. It knits well between larger woodland perennials and ferns, and asks only for occasional water in dry spells.