Obviously the first order of business is to make the shaded areas of our garden as hospitable to plants as possible, but once the type of shade has been evaluated, the necessary improvements are complete, and great aunt Maude has been toasted, the fun of plant selection begins. I have scant interest in lawns or vegetables so the shady ladies of my garden are purely decorative. While gardening books frequently provide lists of plants that “tolerate” shade, no one wants a plant that is going to sit and pout, always yearning to be taking a sun bath with her sisters. Rather, we should be looking for plants which bask in shade, or even glow in the dark, putting on a seasonal show of foliage and flowers, in a variety of shapes, sizes, colors, and fragrance. There are so many plants to choose from that I have limited my recommendations to some of my favorites from my own garden which grow in a variety of shady conditions, and have made my selections from annuals, bulbs, ground covers, herbs, lilies, perennials, shrubs, vines, and small under-story trees. Most of these are available from local nurseries and garden centers and represent a range of foliage and flower color.
In the spring when most deciduous trees are still bare of leaves and the sun strikes the ground at a low angle, the beds under my trees are filled with the traditional bulbs of this season: tulips, daffodils, hyacinths, star of Bethlehem, the anemone de Caen or Greek windflower, crocus, and pink oxalis, all interspersed amid the green of daylily leaves, two silvery leafed spotted dead nettles ‘Yellow Archangel’ and ‘Hermann’s Pride,’ the delicate and lacy silver tansy, the large showy ruby and green leaves of the herb called bloody sorrel, and the brilliant blue of the groundcover veronica ‘Georgia Blue,’ all edged by clumps of variegated liriope and dwarf mondo grass.
In contrast, the flower beds on the north side of the house, which are in dense shade this early in the year, show off a range of foliage colors, including the fresh green of the various campanulas such as ‘Blue Clips’, which is low and spreads well, and the taller Scottish bluebells; the ruffled heucheras in shades of burgundy, purple, silver, dark green, chartreuse, and lime; the ground cover ajuga ‘Chocolate Chip;’ the masses of blue green leaves of the big golden-spurred columbine; and the scalloped leaves of the wild cranesbill geranium, still showing their deep, rosy-orange winter color.
By late spring and early summer, under the trees the foliage of the spring bulbs is dying back and hidden by the increasing size of the daylilies which are setting their first blooms, the lilies of the valley are opening their cascading wands of creamy white bells, the soft yellow blooms of the dead nettles are emerging, along with the bright yellow leaves of creeping Jenny, the nearly white ovals of the Dichondra argentea called ‘Silver Falls,’ and the fuzzy green lancelets of the zauschneria, or hummingbird flower, which are three of my favorite groundcovers for shade. Cecile Brunner, a small flowered rambling rose has climbed through the canopy of the trees and now cascades back down in a shower of pale pink, while below her the very large dark green leaves of the Grecian pattern plant hide the first flower spikes nestled in the center of the foliage, the old fashioned cream and purple speckled foxglove is in bloom, and the climbing hydrangea, which is an experiment this year, seems to be alive and putting out tentative shoots. This is also the time to plant annuals such as the gaillardia pulchella ‘Red Plume,’ which my turtles are fond of nibbling; the ground cover bacopa ‘Bridal Showers;’ the garish coleus to brighten the darkest shade; and to see if last year’s rock rose self-seeded again.
In early summer there is less shade in the north beds against the house and those plants come forward which like cool roots but will turn their faces to the sun. Some of the most beautiful are the clematis vines, particularly the newer, large blossomed Estonian cultivars which only climb to five or six feet up lightweight metal trellises. Around the base of these the hostas and ghostly silver Japanese painted ferns are making their appearance, and elsewhere in the beds the dark blue plumbago, penstemon, garden phlox, German statice, and lady’s mantle, are among the perennials filling out; while the herbs are represented by germander and rue. Tall spikes of crocosmia are coming up through the daylilies, and the biennial, self-seeding wallflowers are popping up in unexpected places. The plume poppy, which will be as tall as the house by the end of summer, is still less than two feet tall, but is busy putting out volunteers, which peep out from everywhere, daring the gardener to be so cruel as to pluck them from their beds. Columbine and cranesbill geraniums are in full bloom, and the spiderwort, another favorite of the turtles, may even bloom this year before it becomes a late night snack.
Along the east side, and against the fence, is a narrow bed of Apache plume, cannas, tall bearded iris, yellow flag iris, and crocosmias. Similarly, on the west side of the house, the narrow bed against the fence is filled with variegated liriope, rosemary, a Carolina jessamine vine, honeysuckle, and a large salvia greggii called ‘Raspberry Ripple.’ These beds are in shade much of the day, except when the blazing noonday sun crosses the sky, but with good soil amendments, my soaker hose system, and mulch, the plants all thrive.
High summer in the shaded beds under the trees continues to be colorful, with daylilies, gaillardia, zauschneria , rock rose, penstemon, phlox, tansy, campanula, heuchera, statice, salvia, hibiscus, dwarf crape myrtle, St John’s wort, and many other plants Most of these will continue blooming until the first hard freeze of the year if they are deadheaded periodically, and will be augmented by the red spider lilies and the amaryllis belladonna, which pop up as if by magic in the cool days of fall.
The now partially sun-drenched beds on the north side of the house continue to put on a spectacular show. The heuchera, which have been planted so they are in continual shade, provide a backdrop of wonderful foliage for the electric blue of the plumbago, the gaudy orange crocosmia and the muted burgundy, cream, and gold wallflowers. The plume poppy has put out the long, buff colored panicles which give it its name, and which complement the round, fluffy seed heads of the clematis.
At the side of the house, the cannas have reached for the sky, and their foliage and flowers scream for attention, and scattered throughout the shaded parts of the garden are pots of violets and coleus and mysterious annuals with small, red, green, and cream polka-dot leaves, that I don’t remember buying, but must have once found attractive.
By late autumn, restful foliage colors predominate in the shade beds, and I begin to plan for another spring. The squirrels ate some of the crocus bulbs, my tulips seldom bloom a second year, there are some new daffodils or hyacinths or minor bulbs that I want to try, and fortunately the bulb catalogs are on hand. Many of the local nurseries and garden centers have plant sales and, provided the new plants will have time to develop their root system and I can muster the energy to clean the beds, fall can be a good season for planting. Or I could consider myself just another shady lady, relax on the patio, and toast great aunt Maude one more time!