Garden Bloggers Design Workshop – Made for the Shade

Hi Nan, we have about as much shade as you, waiting for the trees to grow. But shade, like sun, is relative. This will be fun to write about. 🙂
Frances

I have no doubt that you’ll come up with something fun and interesting, as you always do, Frances!
-Nan

Hi, Nancy — Dappled shade is essential for the health and vitality of succulents and other ornamentals where I live (inland Southern CA). Planting beneath the canopy of lacy trees protects plants from harsh sun in summer and acts as a blanket when temperatures dip below freezing in winter. Acacias and oaks provide this essential protection in my garden, and also are waterwise. Another good choice for dry Southwest gardens is the lovely, green-trunked palo verde tree.

Thanks for sharing your experience and planting suggestions, Debra!
-Nan

Hi Nan~~ I’ve got three LARGE sweet gum trees (Liquidamber) in my front yard. It’s a love/hate collaboration. They are horrible litterers, dropping round seed pods constantly. However they do provide copious quantities of shade, which I love. They hoard rainfall, making it impossible to grow anything remotely moisture loving beneath their canopy. Yet they boast glorious fall color and multiple piles of leaves for composting. Their branches cater to wildlife but their roots are extremely shallow and love to destroy shovels and creativity. See, love/hate. 🙂 I’ve had success with dwarf laurel, dwarf Alberta spruce, Fatsia japonica, Nandina and our native Mahonia. My courtyard is also under the trees’ umbrella. Here I’ve taken to container culture. Ferns, Japanese Forest grass, Dicentra, Lily of the Valley, Corydalis and many other moisture shade lovers call this home, knowing that I, their ever faithful caretaker will dish out weekly waterings without the risk of Sweet gum roots slithering up to steal it. I love the adage, “Bloom Where You’re Planted.”

“Problem” gardening areas almost always have creative solutions but sometimes we need to “dig” for them.

This is wonderful, Grace. You do seem to have made the best of a challenging situation. Great suggestions!
-Nan

Your Question…

“Dry shade always seems to be near the top of shade gardeners’ biggest gripes. Have you found ways to deal with these difficult conditions, or are you still struggling and looking for advice?”

I’m a person who would rather have my fingernails pulled out than go outside in August to water. I’m in Tennessee Zone 6b and my shade beds are foundation beds.

I add this disclaimer: any time you dig in a new plant of any kind, and in any conditions, it is best to water it well for the first year to establish it. That said, here are the plants that do well for me.

Japanese Painted Fern
Christmas Fern
Sensitive Fern
Holly Fern
Leatherleaf Fern
Cinnamon Fern (they say this needs lots of water, but mine does well without)
Hosta (check with your local nursery or garden friends for the varieties that are proven to your area. Others will do well, but only if you like to pamper them)
Bleeding Heart (native variety with ferny leaves. Blooms all summer if you deadhead)
Trillium
May Apple
Virginia Blue Bell
Celandine Poppy
Wild Ginger
Arum Italica
Epimidium
Ajuga
Lily of the Valley
Itea Virginica (Henry’s Garnet is very pretty)
Liriope “Silver Dragon” (actually tame in the shade – sun is a different story)
Chameleon Plant (Described as ‘aromatic.’ Read ‘smells bad.’ Prolific like Liriope in sun, but it has the prettiest little white flower.)
Japanese Anemone
Heuchera (the old fashioned kind does better for me than the newer varieties, which tend to get leaf burn in the heat and heave themselves out of the soil in the winter)

Can anyone suggest shrubs that do well in dry shade?

This is terrific, Liz! Thanks so much for sharing your list. Keep checking back to see if anyone has tips on shrubs for you.
-Nan

Hi Nan, this one was fairly easy to work with, thanks!

My post is up:

http://fairegarden.wordpress.com/2009/05/06/looking-for-shade/

I’m so with you on this one, Frances, because I’m lookin’ for shade too!
-Nan

Another topic near and dear to my heart! Here’s my post:
http://rambleonrose-rr.blogspot.com/2009/05/garden-bloggers-design-workshop.html

Great to have you back this month, Rose. I’m so glad you shared the link.
-Nan

I love shade gardens, and I have all the possible permutations of shade. It’s too bad I don’t have time to write several posts, but here’s the one I did manage to do: http://tinyurl.com/owtgwj. If I get a chance, I’ll do one on dry shade, with which I have vast experience. (Here’s a snippet: forget about Aruncus and most Astilbe.)

Trust you to come up with a creative take on the theme, MMD. Thank you for taking the time to share this with us.
-Nan

I garden in an older neighborhood with many mature trees and 3/4 of my garden in shaded. Fortunately some of favorite plants are shade lovers. My contribution is below and thanks for hosting the workshop.

My Top Ten For Shade

I’m delighted that we finally found a topic that tempted you to post, Les. It was very much worth waiting for!
-Nan

Here’s my dry shade post: http://mcgregorsdaughter.blogspot.com/2009/05/success-in-dry-shade.html.

Hey, a bonus post, with some really great plants. Thanks MMD!
-Nan

My GBDW post is up! 🙂 http://yardisgreen.blogspot.com/2009/05/gbdw-shade-shade-shade.html

My deep shade gardening post is today, here:

http://seedscatterer.blogspot.com/2009/05/shade-gardening.html

Yesterday’s post has dappled shade plants in bloom.

http://seedscatterer.blogspot.com/2009/05/blooming-friday.html

Thanks so much for these links, Nell Jean. We’re glad to have you join us this month!
-Nan

I’ve written about the shady side of my house many times. We have large maple trees and a hillside chock full of their roots, so not even vinca grows well. My solution is a small perennial shade garden along the house and then a bunch of containers with shade loving plants on the hill and in hanging containers.

Back in September ’07: http://heathersgarden.typepad.com/heathers_garden/2007/09/the-shady-side-.html

From April this year: http://heathersgarden.typepad.com/heathers_garden/2009/04/what-i-learned-this-week.html

And just recently: http://heathersgarden.typepad.com/heathers_garden/2009/05/rolling-right-along.html

Basic plants that have worked well for me include impatiens, hosta, and ferns. But a pretty glazed container will brighten up even the darkest, barest area.

Wonderful, Heather – what a super collection of links. Thanks for taking the time to share these.
-Nan