5 Plants To Use in a Shaded Garden

Most people would feel sorry for a gardener having to work in a shaded garden because of the problems they must have and how they would cope with it. Nonsense! A shady garden is a great asset not a problem.

Here we take a look at 5 plants every gardener can use in shaded areas that don’t receive much sunshine.

The knowing gardener would be desperately trying to find a bit of shade in their plot so they could grow these beautiful shade loving plants. Plant these in a sunny border and they would look totally out of place and in a lot of cases would shrivel and die.  So rejoice in your shaded garden areas and start planting something new and in keeping with the conditions.

There are many different degrees of shade from the deepest all year round shade to the lightest of shade where the sunlight falls for a good spell of the day. If you can imagine that you’re standing at the edge of woodland, the first few steps in, where there are just a few saplings growing, would be classed as light shade.  Further into the wood a few more young trees would be growing; this would be moderate shade. Finally into the middle of the wood where sunlight never reaches would be deep shade. Not many of us have woodland in our gardens so we can think of how many hours of sunlight per day a particular section has. As you would expect, no sunlight falling in a day would be deep shade, shade for half a day would be considered moderate shade and shade for only two or three hours would be light shade. With that in mind you will be able to design a beautiful verdant plot that most “sunny” gardeners would envy.

Hosta

Nearly all gardeners know the Hosta for its beautiful foliage and they have been in the list of most popular plants for some years. Their leaves can range from the darkest green to almost white; some with stripes, some with contrasting edges. It’s a pity that they are planted mainly as foliage plants because some of their flowers are quite spectacular. New varieties appear very regularly so you will have a fantastic choice of flower and foliage. Unfortunately the poor Hosta is a martyr to slugs and snails although some varieties seem to be affected less than others. Constant vigilance is the order of the day, or rather evening. Use a torch and pick them from the leaves, disposing of them as you wish, or use chemical slug control if you prefer.

Tolerance to shade: Light to moderate and some even deep 

Foxglove (Digitalis)

This plant is a delight in the garden that is so easy on the eye.  It is one of the quintessential cottage garden plants. Colours range from white, pink to purple-blue and heights from 2 feet to a gigantic six feet. They are very easy to grow and do not have many problems except slugs and snails really enjoy munching on the very young Foxglove. Just because they are a very common wild plant in the countryside does not mean that they should not have pride of place in the garden.

Tolerance to shade: Light to moderate shade 

Bergenia

Commonly known as Elephants Ears they have large leathery leaves in a rich green colour that changes to yellow, scarlet and mahogany in the autumn. Dense heads of long lasting very attractive flowers appear in early spring in colours of white through to pink. These robust plants survive well in even spartan conditions and are as tough as old boots. They will reward you well for very little effort.

Tolerance to shade: Moderate to deep

Ladies’ Mantle (Alchemilla)

Another very robust plant that is popular with flower arrangers. The rounded grey green leaves are almost pleated and the lime green yellow flowers come in abundant billows. The Ladies’ Mantle always looks fresh and when the first flush is just going over, give them a trim and in no time at all more shoots will appear. The glory of these plants becomes visible first thing in the morning when the drops of dew on their leaves shine and move almost like mercury.

Tolerance to shade: Light to moderate

 Spotted Laurel (Aucuba Japonica)

For a no nonsense, easy to care for plant you could look no further than a Spotted Laurel. This handsome tough shrub is even resistant to traffic pollution. They are seen mainly in their striking variegated form with shiny evergreen leaves spotted and streaked yellow. They are so sturdy and resilient that they will even grow under old dense beech trees in deep shade. As if the attractive leaves aren’t enough they will give you a fine display of rich red berries in the autumn.

Tolerance to shade: Moderate to deep. 

These are just a few of the numerous plants that can be grown in varying degrees of shade. Listed because they are bone hardy and need very little attention they’re perfect for the novice gardener wanting to design a shady border.

For all your gardening supplies to get your shaded garden off to beautiful start; including seeds, soil and tools visit our website.

Published August 27th, 2014 by Jordan. Article ref 3059

Tags: garden plants, gardening advice, shaded garen

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