ground cover

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

ground′ cov′er, 

1. Botany the herbaceous plants and low shrubs in a forest, considered as a whole.
2. Plant Biology any of a variety of low-growing or trailing plants used to cover the ground in areas where grass is difficult to grow, as in dense shade or on steep slopes.
Also, ground′cov′er. 
• 1895–1900

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

ground cover noun

1. dense low herbaceous plants and shrubs that grow over the surface of the ground, esp, in a forest, preventing soil erosion or, in a garden, stifling weeds