Ground covers can often be an easy and beautiful way to liven up a garden. These plants will spill over the edges of walls, surround the boulders in rock gardens, and otherwise fill in unused spaces.

Aubrieta, also known as false rock cress, is a particularly useful variety. The perennial ground-hugging plant produces beautiful purple flowers during the spring and early summer, along with a mat of evergreen gray-green foliage.

This ground cover can be used in a variety of ways. Jeff Cox, author of the 1998 book "Perennial All-Stars," says aubrieta can take root between the pavers in a walkway or gain purchase in the crevices of a wall. It can also be established in a stone staircase, set up in a rock garden, or grown in a container.

A site with full sunlight is the best habitat for aubrieta. The Canadian gardening company OSC Seeds says the plant can also tolerate partial shade.

Like most plants, aubrieta requires well-drained soil. The Cornell University Cooperative Extension says rocky or sandy sites with a high lime content are ideal.

Aubrieta can be grown from seed, cuttings, or by dividing an established plant. Cuttings taken in early to mid-summer should have their lower leaves removed before they are planted.

When growing aubrieta from seed, it is best to start the plant indoors in the spring. OSC Seeds says seeds should be started at a temperature no higher than 60 degrees. Once the seeds have germinated, the plant can be hardened off and transplanted into the garden.

You might have to be patient for flowers to arrive. The South Carolina company Park Seed says aubrieta seeds transplanted to the garden will not produce flowers until the next spring.

Keep the soil moist, but not too wet. Cox says you should water the plant during dry periods and let natural rainfall take care of it the rest of the time.

A bit of fertilizer can also be beneficial, such as adding bonemeal after the flowers bloom. Park Seed recommends treating aubrieta with all-purpose fertilizer every four to six weeks.

Although aubrieta generally won't exceed one foot in height, it can easily cover a much larger area of ground. Shearing back the plant after its initial flowering period will not only give you cuttings to help it propagate elsewhere, but can also allow you to enjoy a second flowering period in the autumn.

Try to cut back the plant before it produces seed. Cox recommends trimming it to about half its size, making sure not to cut too close to the roots. The Cornell University Cooperative Extension says an autumn pruning is unnecessary, and any excessive or damaged foliage should be removed in the spring.

Aubrieta is generally not too susceptible to diseases or pests. Root rot may occur if it is planted in a poorly drained area. Hot, dry weather can also cause it to wither, but the plant grows well in New England and other areas with cooler summers.

The plant can be divided every one to three years. However, Cox says this process can be difficult, and it is often easier to propagate aubrieta through the cuttings taken after the first bloom of the season.