Best way to clear ground to plant ground cover and suggestions

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I’ve got a strip of scrubland on edge of my allotment. It’s slopey, rough and the other side of my hedge but it’s my responsibility to keep it under control.

I’d like to plant groundcover, for the bees and to cut on strimming time. It’s all grass at the mo and docks and thistles...

I’ve planted some geraniums that are quite thuggish and spreading, but I was thinking of vinca....it’s very sunny and quite exposed, damp clay.

How do I clear it and what do I plant?

For ground cover I’d suggest Persicaria, it comes in a variety of sizes, spreads well and the bees love the tall spikes of flowers.
Another suggestion is bugle, lower growing with purple flowers, again bees love it.

If you don't fancy clearing it yourself, you could probably get someone in to do that. Post - exam teenagers may be interested in earning a little money. It might be worth lifting the top couple of inches of soil if there are lots of bits of roots.

I have a couple of perennial geraniums that do well for ground cover, and are very forgiving. You could probably split the ones you have to help them spread. I've also had good results with dianthus and diascia. Wallflowers and lavender may be good although can get leggy. Some poppies could be nice too.