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Shade Gardening

2011 List at the bottom of the page. (page needs to be edited for 2012)

When thinking of gardening in the shade you probably think of large trees with hard, poor soil and a thin lawn struggling to grow underneath. Perhaps it is the north side of the building with moss for a lawn.

Most plants do prefer sunny conditions; they tend to have larger and showier flowers.

Different articles and gardeners will classify shade into various categories; usually dapple, light and deep shade. Throw in soil moisture conditions and soil types and the combinations can be endless. No wonder people cry help. I don’t want to confuse you or discourage anyone from the joys of shade gardening. There is nothing nicer on a hot, hot day than sitting under the shade of a large tree admiring the glorious colours of your garden.

Let’s break down some shady situations.

High branches of large open trees create filtered shade or dapple shade. This type of shade is ideal for spring bloomers which appreciate the spring sun and summer shade. Plants blooming before the leaves of the trees come out such as Dutchman’s Breeches, Shooting Stars, Trout lily, and Trilliums just to name a few. They may leave a nice cover of leaves throughout the summer under the trees or they may disappear altogether.

Shade may be created by buildings and other permanent objects such as other small trees and shrubs and other structures such as trellises or fences. This type of shade is non-permanent. It shifts depending on the time of the day. It may be sunny in the morning but shaded in the afternoon, it may be shade in the morning and sun in the afternoon. It may have a combination of sun in the morning, shade at noon and sun late in the day. The combinations can be endless. Many plants may do very well with morning sun but require the afternoon shade to take the edge off the heat of the day. Plants such as Lungwort, Ligularia (The Rocket) and some Hosta will wilt in the hot afternoon sun. Like wise some sun loving plants such as Rudbeckia and Echinacea can tolerate morning shade but need that afternoon sun to thrive.

Deep or dense shade may be the most problematic. It is usually characterized by very little sun. If it is caused by a building, there is probably not much you can do about it. Might as well mulch it with stone or bark and rotate shade containers in and out. Go for the hard landscaping. It is probably not a large area because on the edges, there would be some light.

Trees that cause the deep shade again can be mulched underneath. They may also be pruned up higher to allow a bit more light in.

2011 List

Other shade loving perennials may be found in the Native, Ferns and Grasses Lists.

(Not everything may be available)

Aconitum	cammarum	Bicolour Monkshood
Aconitum	cammarum spicatum ‘Stainless Steel’	Stainless Steel Monkshood
Aconitum	carmichaelii ‘arendsii’	Autumn Monkshood
Aconitum	ivorine	Ivory Monkshood
Aconitum	lycoctonum ssp. neapolitanum	Alpine Monkshood (yellow)
Actea	pachypoda	White Baneberry
Actea	rubra	Red Baneberry
Adiantum	pedatum	Maidenhair Fern
Ajuga	reptans ‘Burgundy Glow’	Burgundy Glow Ajuga
Anemone	sylvestris	Snowdrop Anemone
Aquilegia	canadense	Red Columbine
Aquilegia	vulgaris	Various Columbine
Aquilegia	vulgaris ‘Nora Barlow’	Columbine
Aquilegia	vulgaris ‘William Guinness’	Columbine
Aralia	nudicaulis	Wild Sasperilla
Aralia	racemosa	Spikenard
Arisaema	Various Species	Jack in the Pulpit
Asarum	canadense	Native Ginger
Asarum	european	European Ginger
Astilbe	arendsii "Bressingham Beauty"
Astilbe	arendsii "Rhineland"
Astilbe	arendsii "Bridal Veil"
Astilbe	chinensis "Pumila"
Astilbe	chinensis "Visions in Red"
Astilbe	japonica "Deutschland" (white)
Astilbe	japonica "Montgomery"
Astilbe	Japonica "Peach Blossom"
Astilbe	simplicifolia "Sprite"
Astilbe	straussenfeder "Ostrich Plume"
Athyrium	‘Branford Beauty’	Painted Fern
Athyrium	filix-femina	Lady Fern
Athyrium	filix-femina crispa	Lady Fern
Athyrium	filix-femina Ghost	Lady Fern
Blechnum	spicant	Saw Fern
Clintonia	borealis	Blue Bead Lily
Convallaria	majalis "Dorien"	Lily of the Valley ‘ Dorien
Convallaria	majalis Flore Pleno	Dbl flowered Lily of the Valley
Cornus	canadensis	Bunchberry
Cortusa	caucasica
Cypridpedium	calceolus var pubenscens	Yellow Lady Slipper
Dicentra	cucullaria	Dutchman’s Breeches
Dicentra	formosa	Dwarf Bleeding Heart
Dicentra	formosa "Aurora"	Dwarf Bleeding Heart (white)
Dicentra	spectabilis	Old Fashion BH (pink)
Dicentra	spectabilis	Old Fashion BH (White)
Disporopsis	pernyi	Evergreen Solomon’s Seal
Dryopteris	disjuncta	Oak Fern
Dryopteris	feliz ‘Robusta	Robust Wood Fern
Dryopteris	goldieana	Goldie’s Wood Fern
Dryopteris	marginalis	Wood Fern
Epimedium	grandiflorum "Lilafee"	Barrenwort (Lilac)
Epimedium	pubigerum 'Orangekonigin"	Barrenwort (Orange)
Epimedium	rubrum	Barrenwort (Red)
Epimedium	versicolor "Sulphureum"	Barrenwort (Yellow)
Erythronium	americanum	Trout lily
Galium	odoratum	Sweet Woodruff
Helleborus	niger "Christmas Rose"	White Hellebore
Helleborus	orientalis	White spotted Lady
Helleborus	orientalis "Red Mountain"	Red Mountain
Helleborus	purpurascens	Purple Hellebore
Hepatica	acutiloba	Sharp Lobed Hepatica
Heuchera	‘Caramel’	Coral Bells
Heuchera	‘Citronelle’	Coral Bells
Heuchera	‘Green Spice’	Coral Bells
Heuchera	‘Mocha’	Coral Bells
Heuchera	‘Palace Purple’	Coral Bells
Heuchera	‘Silver Scrolls’	Coral Bells
Kirenseshoma	palmata	Yellow Wax Bells
Ligularia	dentata ‘Desdmona’	Golden Groundsel
Ligularia	dentata Britt Marie Crawford	Black Leafed Ligularia
Ligularia	fisheri (?)
Ligularia	stenocephala "The Rocket"	Leopard Plant
Maianthemum	canadense	Wild lily of the Valley
Matteuccia	struthiopteris	Ostrich Fern
Mertensia	virginica	Virginia Bluebells
Onoclea	sensibilis	Sensitive Fern
Osmunda	cinnamomea	Cinnamon Fern
Osmunda	claytoniana	Interrupted Fern
Osmunda	regalis	Royal Fern
Podophyllum	peltatuim	Mayapple
Polygonatum	biflorum	Solomon's Seal
Polystichum	acrostichoides	Christmas Fern
Polystichum	Herrenhausen	Soft Shield Fern
Polystichum	munitum	Western Sword Fern
Polystichum	polyblepharum	Japanese Tassel Fern
Primula	auricula "Francesca"	Primula
Primula	denticulata	Mauve Drumstick Primula
Primula	elatior	Oxslip Primula
Primula	frondosa	Bird’s Eye Primrose
Primula	japonica	Japanese Primrose
Primula	pruhonicensis mix
Primula	sielboldii	Pink Snowflake
Primula	sielboldii "Sayogorama"	Apple Blossom Snowflake
Primula	sielboldii "Yubisugata"	Violet Snowflake
Primula	veris	Cow Slip Primula
Primula	vulagris	Double Pink
Primula	vulgaris	Pink with Yellow Throat
Pulmonaria	‘Majeste’	Spotted Dog
Pulmonaria	‘Samboor’	Lungwort
Pulmonaria	angustifolia	Blue Lungwort
Pulmonaria	angustifolia "Blue Ensign"	Soldiers and Sailors
Pulmonaria	officinalis "Sissinghurst White"	Joseph and Mary
Pulmonaria	rubra "Redstart"	Jerusalem Sage
Pulmonaria	saccharata “Dora Bielefeld”	Bethleham Sage
Sanguinaria	canadensis	Bloodroot
Smilacina	racemosa	False Solomon Seal
Stylophorum	diphylla	Wood Poppy
Symplocarpus	foetidus	Eastern Skunk Cabbage
Telekia	speciosa	Heartleaf Oxeye
Thalictrum	aquilegifolium	Columbine Meadow Rue
Thelypteris	decursive pinnata	Japanese Beech Fern
Tiarella	‘Crowfeather’	Foam Flower
Trientalis *	borealis	Star Flower
Trillium	erectum	Purple Trillium
Trillium	grandifolia	White Trillium
Trillium	sessile luteum	Yellow Trillium
Trollius	chinensis ledebourii	Chinese Globe Flower
Trollius	cultorum	Orange Princess Globe Flower
Univularia	grandiflora	Merrybells
Valarian	officinalis	Garden Heliotrope
Viola		Blue Violets
Viola		White Violets

* Not available this year