Kentish Express Ashford & District
CASTING LIGHT ON SHADE
Shade-loving plants: Garden expert Susanna Grant shares ways to bring dark corners to life in your garden
Wondering which plants do well in shade, or what to plant in a garden that doesn’t get much sun? When it comes to plants that flourish in poorly lit spaces, it turns out there are different types of shade to consider – from full shade to partial shade, filtered or dappled.
“The thing is, there’re loads of different sorts of shade. It’s just not all the same,” says gardener and writer Susanna Grant, co-founder of Linda (hellotherelinda.com), a shade-plant specialist and planting design consultancy.
“Your soil could be damp, it could be dry. Also, building shade is different to tree shade because trees are deciduous and the leaves fall. So there aren’t any hard and fast rules.”
Far from a case of one-shadefits-all, Grant says it’s all about understanding the sort of shade you have, when it comes to choosing the best plants for them – and she outlines lots of tips on how to
2. PERENNIALS
There are so many perennials to choose from. If you like the look of something, do a little research and see if there are other cultivars with colours or heights you prefer. Finding the right plants for you takes time.
Since most annuals prefer a sunny spot, perennial plants are essential to the shade gardener. These are wonderful
work with the light and bring dark corners to life in Shade, one of a series of new books in collaboration with awardwinning
plants that generously return year after year, often bigger and better.
My top three perennials to pretty up your place are begonia grandis subsp. evansiana var. alba (white hardy begonia), thalictrum delavayi ‘Splendide White’ (Meadow rue) and lamprocapnos spectabilis ‘Alba’ (white bleeding heart).
magazine, Bloom.
Ready to start planting? Here are some of Susanna’s top tips…
3. GRASSES
I love grasses in a shady border. They can really lift the planting by adding movement and a more naturalistic vibe, breaking up clumps of ferns or evergreen shrubs. Many work in pots or planters and are invaluable for balcony planting. Most grasses can deal with some shade, but check the requirements, just in case.
My top three suggestions to up your grass game are hakonechloa macra (Japanese forest grass), luzula nivea (snowy woodrush) and melica uniflora f. albida (Siberian melic).
1. CLIMBERS
Although most climbers aren’t suited to deep shade, many like their roots shaded, as they grow towards the sun and there are some that are definitely suitable for northfacing walls.
If you’re planting them in the ground, make sure they’re around 50cm away from any walls or fences, so they’re not in a rain shadow and can receive rain.
You also need to give them adequate support. Clematis can look beautiful scrambling through trees, but plant it 1m from the trunk and then train it towards the tree.
Pots are fine for most climbers if they’re a generous size — I’d say at least 45cm tall and wide — but you need to ensure they don’t dry out.
4. SHRUBS
Certain shrubs are small enough and tolerant enough to survive in part shade.
They’re broadly familiar with being part of the understorey, and therefore making the most of the light that filters down through the trees above them. It’s worth noting that if they’re planted in pots, shrubs won’t reach the maximum height, which isn’t always a bad thing.
My top three shrubs to style up your small space are chaenomeles speciosa ‘Geisha Girl’ (flowering quince); fatsia polycarpa ‘Green Fingers’ and viburnum x burkwoodii.
5. FERNS
Ferns are one of the first plants people think of for shade. Evergreen options can add structure and winter interest, and the perennials often have the most magical unfurling foliage in fresh greens, coppery-pinks or silvers — there’s a wonderful variety of foliage shape and size to explore.
Some ferns take to dry shade, while some need to be kept moist - if you don’t let
these dry out and mulch them regularly, they’ll work hard.
Pretty much all ferns grow well in pots, as they have shallow roots. A combination of three ferns with contrasting foliage in a large pot is a winner for a shady corner.
Three of my favourite ferns are adiantum venustum (evergreen maidenhair), dryopteris erythrosora (copper shield fern), and niponicum var. pictum (Japanese painted fern).