Creeping myrtle (Vinca minor), also called common periwinkle or lesser periwinkle, is classified as invasive in much of the eastern United States and parts of Canada, where it escapes gardens and smothers native forest understories. It was introduced from Europe as an ornamental groundcover centuries ago and is still sold at garden centers, which is part of why it keeps spreading. The gap between its reputation as a pretty, low-maintenance landscape plant and its behavior in the wild is wide enough that many gardeners are genuinely surprised to learn it causes ecological harm.
Why Creeping Myrtle Qualifies as Invasive
A plant earns the “invasive” label when it establishes outside its native range and spreads aggressively enough to cause environmental or economic harm. Creeping myrtle checks every box. Native to central and southern Europe, it was brought to North America in the 1700s for use as a groundcover, particularly in shaded areas where turf grass struggles. It adapted extremely well to eastern North American forests, and over time it moved from garden beds into adjacent woodlands, stream banks, and floodplains.
Several U.S. states and Canadian provinces now list Vinca minor on their invasive species registries. It appears on invasive plant lists in states across the Mid-Atlantic, the Southeast, and the Midwest, and it has naturalized in the Pacific Northwest as well. Some states classify it specifically as a “lesser” threat compared to its larger relative, Vinca major (greater periwinkle), which is even more aggressive in warmer climates. But “lesser” is relative. In forested settings where creeping myrtle takes hold, it forms such dense mats that virtually nothing else can grow underneath.
How It Spreads So Effectively
Creeping myrtle’s success as an invader comes down to a few traits that, from a gardener’s perspective, are exactly what make it appealing. It is evergreen, shade-tolerant, drought-tolerant once established, and grows in a wide range of soil types. It spreads primarily through vegetative growth: long trailing stems (stolons) creep along the ground, rooting at the nodes wherever they touch soil. A single plant can extend several feet in a season, and a small patch can carpet a large area within a few years.
Seed production plays a smaller role in its spread compared to its vegetative reproduction, but seeds do form and can be carried by water or moved with soil. The plant also hitches rides in dumped garden waste. When people toss yard clippings into ravines or along woodland edges, any fragments of creeping myrtle with a node can root and start a new colony. This is one of the most common ways it escapes cultivation, and it means that even careful gardeners can accidentally introduce it to wild areas if they are not thoughtful about disposal.
Once established in a forest, creeping myrtle has a structural advantage over many native wildflowers and ground-layer plants. Its evergreen leaves persist through winter, shading the soil year-round and capturing light that native spring ephemerals, like trilliums and Virginia bluebells, depend on during the brief window before canopy trees leaf out. The dense mat of stems and roots also physically blocks native seedlings from reaching the soil surface.
The Damage to Native Ecosystems
The ecological harm from creeping myrtle is most severe in deciduous forest understories. In an uninvaded forest floor, you would typically find a diverse mix of native wildflowers, ferns, mosses, and tree seedlings. When creeping myrtle moves in, that diversity collapses. Studies of invaded sites consistently show reduced native plant species richness and lower overall ground-layer cover of native species beneath Vinca mats.
The effects ripple outward. Native ground-layer plants support specific pollinators, provide food for wildlife, and contribute to nutrient cycling in the soil. When those plants disappear under a monoculture of periwinkle, the insects, birds, and small mammals that depend on them lose habitat and food sources. Creeping myrtle’s own flowers do attract some pollinators, but it supports far fewer insect species than the diverse native plant community it replaces.
There is also evidence that some Vinca species produce compounds that inhibit the germination and growth of neighboring plants, a phenomenon called allelopathy. While this has been studied more thoroughly in Vinca major, the trait may contribute to creeping myrtle’s ability to suppress competitors. The practical effect is the same either way: once a creeping myrtle colony is well established, native plants have an extremely difficult time reclaiming the space without human intervention.
Is It Invasive Everywhere, or Just in Certain Regions?
Context matters. Creeping myrtle is most problematic in the humid, temperate forests of eastern North America, where conditions closely match its native European habitat. In arid western climates, it tends to stay where it is watered and rarely escapes into wildlands on its own. In extremely cold northern climates, harsh winters can limit its spread, though it still naturalizes in sheltered spots.
Within regions where it is invasive, not every planting leads to a problem. A patch of creeping myrtle in a downtown yard surrounded by pavement and buildings is unlikely to invade a forest. The risk increases sharply when the planting is near wooded areas, stream corridors, or other natural habitats. Properties that border parks, nature preserves, or riparian zones are the highest-risk locations. If your yard backs up to woods, creeping myrtle planted as a border or groundcover has a real chance of colonizing those woods over time.
Some gardeners argue that their creeping myrtle has stayed put for years and therefore is not invasive in their area. The tricky part is that Vinca minor can persist as a slow-growing patch for a long time before conditions trigger rapid expansion, such as a disturbance that opens the canopy, a wet year that promotes stolon growth, or gradual soil enrichment from leaf litter. A patch that looks well-behaved for a decade can become a problem in the next one.
How to Remove Creeping Myrtle
Controlling creeping myrtle is doable but requires persistence. The plant’s rooting-at-every-node habit means that incomplete removal almost guarantees regrowth. Here are the main approaches, each with trade-offs.
Manual Removal
For small patches, hand-pulling and raking out the stems is the most straightforward method. The key is getting the roots. Creeping myrtle roots are shallow but extensive, and every node left behind can regenerate. Work when the soil is moist so roots pull more easily. Roll or bundle the stems as you go to prevent fragments from scattering. Bag everything and dispose of it in yard waste collection rather than composting at home, since the plant can survive in compost piles that do not reach high enough temperatures.
For larger infestations, some land managers use a combination of raking and rolling. Loosening the mat with a heavy garden rake and then rolling it up like carpet can be efficient, especially on slopes where the root network is relatively shallow. Follow up by inspecting the site every few weeks and pulling any regrowth before it re-establishes. Expect to revisit the site for at least two growing seasons.
Smothering
Covering an infested area with heavy-duty landscape fabric, thick cardboard, or black plastic sheeting can kill creeping myrtle by blocking light. This works best when you first cut the stems short and then lay the covering directly on the remaining growth. Weigh it down with mulch, rocks, or soil. The cover needs to stay in place for at least one full growing season, and sometimes two, because the plant’s evergreen stems store enough energy to attempt regrowth for months. Smothering is practical for defined areas like garden beds but less so for large woodland patches where the terrain is uneven.
Herbicide Application
For large or heavily established colonies, herbicides are often the most realistic option. Glyphosate-based products applied to actively growing foliage are the most commonly recommended treatment. Because creeping myrtle is evergreen, it can be sprayed in late fall or early spring when most native plants are dormant, which reduces collateral damage. A foliar spray at concentrations typically recommended for woody invasives tends to be effective, though a second application is usually needed to catch regrowth from surviving root nodes.
Triclopyr, another commonly used herbicide for broadleaf invasives, also works on creeping myrtle. It has the advantage of not harming grasses, which makes it useful in situations where you want to preserve a grass understory while targeting the periwinkle. Always follow label directions, and be cautious near waterways, since both glyphosate and triclopyr can harm aquatic organisms if they reach streams or ponds.
A combination approach often yields the best results: cut and remove as much of the plant as possible first, let regrowth emerge for a few weeks, then spray the new growth when it is actively photosynthesizing and most vulnerable to herbicide uptake. This reduces the total amount of herbicide needed and speeds up the timeline.
What to Do After Removal
Removing creeping myrtle is only half the job. Bare ground left behind after removal is an open invitation for the next invasive species to move in, or for Vinca itself to return from any overlooked fragments. Active replanting with native species appropriate to your region and light conditions gives the site the best chance of long-term recovery.
Research on forest understory restoration after invasive plant removal suggests that the characteristics of the native plant community you establish matter more than simply how many seeds you throw down. A study of native recovery following invasive removal in forest understories found that the fastest recovery rates were associated with high native species richness and with native species that have traits suited to high resource availability, such as large leaf surface area. Recovery was also faster during years with lower drought stress. Interestingly, the frequency of invasive removal treatments and whether supplemental seeds were added had less influence on recovery speed than the traits and diversity of the native community already present.
1PubMed Central. Successful recovery of native plants post-invasive removal in forest understories is driven by native community featuresThe practical takeaway: if your site already has some native plants growing among or near the creeping myrtle, protect and encourage those during removal. If the site is a near-monoculture of Vinca with almost no natives left, you will likely need to actively plant or seed with a diverse mix of native species suited to the light and moisture conditions. Native plant nurseries and local cooperative extension offices can recommend species appropriate for your area. Timing removal and replanting during years with adequate rainfall, rather than during drought, also improves outcomes.
Native Groundcover Alternatives
One reason creeping myrtle remains so popular despite its invasive status is that it solves a real landscaping problem: covering shaded ground where grass will not grow. Fortunately, native alternatives exist for most regions, and many of them offer the same practical benefits without the ecological downsides.
In eastern North America, native options for shaded groundcover include wild ginger (Asarum canadense), green-and-gold (Chrysogonum virginianum), Pennsylvania sedge (Carex pensylvanica), and native ferns like Christmas fern (Polystichum acrostichoides). For sunnier spots, creeping phlox (Phlox subulata) and wild strawberry (Fragaria virginiana) fill in quickly and provide pollinator habitat. In the Pacific Northwest, kinnikinnick (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi) and inside-out flower (Vancouveria hexandra) serve similar roles.
None of these native alternatives spread quite as aggressively as creeping myrtle, which is both their ecological virtue and their practical limitation. You may need to plant more densely at the outset and tolerate a longer establishment period before you get full coverage. Mulching between plants during the first year or two helps suppress weeds while the groundcover fills in. The trade-off is a planting that supports local wildlife, does not threaten nearby natural areas, and does not require you to fight it back from places you did not want it.
The Garden Center Problem
Creeping myrtle is still widely sold at nurseries and garden centers across much of the United States and Canada, even in states where it is listed as invasive. Very few jurisdictions have enacted outright bans on its sale. This creates a frustrating loop: conservation agencies spend resources removing Vinca from natural areas while the retail horticulture industry continues introducing new plants into the landscape a few miles away.
Some states have addressed this through voluntary “do not sell” lists maintained in cooperation with the nursery industry, but compliance is uneven. A few municipalities and counties have taken stronger action, restricting the planting of certain invasive ornamentals in new landscaping projects. The broader trend in invasive plant policy is moving toward restrictions on sale rather than just removal, but progress is slow. If you are buying groundcover plants and you see Vinca minor on the shelf, the most helpful thing you can do is choose something else and, if you feel like it, mention to the garden center staff why you passed on it.
Vinca Minor Versus Vinca Major
Creeping myrtle (Vinca minor) and greater periwinkle (Vinca major) are closely related and often confused. Both are European introductions, both spread vegetatively, and both are considered invasive in parts of North America. The differences are worth knowing if you are trying to identify which one you have.
Vinca major has noticeably larger leaves and flowers, and its stems are more upright and arching rather than flat against the ground. It is more cold-sensitive than Vinca minor, so it tends to be a bigger problem in warmer climates, particularly in the southeastern U.S. and California, where it aggressively invades riparian areas and can clog stream channels. Vinca minor is hardier and more widespread in cooler climates, thriving from USDA hardiness zones 4 through 9.
Control methods for both species are essentially the same: manual removal, smothering, or herbicide application, with the same emphasis on persistence and follow-up. If anything, Vinca major can be slightly easier to pull because its stems are thicker and less prone to snapping into tiny fragments, but it also tends to root more aggressively at nodes, so the trade-off is roughly even. If you have one species in your yard, keep an eye out for the other, since they sometimes grow together in mixed populations that were planted decades ago and have since merged.