Archive for the ‘Shade Plants’ Category

White flowering Annabelle Hydrangea and gold Hostas inject light & energy in a shaded north facing location.

Over the years of gardening, I have found shade gardening required less time and maintenance than my sunny perennial borders. It also became a tranquil place to relax and unwind after a hectic day.

Here are a few shade gardening tips that are quick and easy to do while making your shade retreat a place you want to spend time in.

1) Consider the Grand Design. You can create the illusion of space by installing a gently curved pathway. Create shade by installing a pergola or umbrellas if you have open sunny areas.

2) Most shade loving plants benefit from some sun (preferably morning which is less harsh)  Light colored foliage plants brighten up shaded areas and look colorful all season. Gold Hostas and moneywort gradually transition from gold to bright yellow. Black leaf plants such as Heuchera Obsidian really depend on some sunlight to bring out the deepest black leaves possible.

3)  How to add light to deep shade

Don’t hesitate to limb up lower branches of trees and shrubs. Those tired and overgrown shrubs will not only have a fresh new look but more oxygen circulates creating a healthier environment.

4 )  Plant Selection & Foliage

Hosta, Hellebore & Fern combine well with their different textures and shapes. The combination of blues & greens are calming in a shade garden

The less sun available, the less energy there is for plants to produce a lot of  flowers that you would normally get in a sunny perennial garden.  You can create a beautiful setting with the right mix of foliage color, shaped & textures.  Blue and green foliage create a calming and comforting feeling in a shade garden.

5 ) Tough Areas

If you are having a hard time getting anything to compete with tree roots, grow your favorite shade plants in containers.  Sink pots in the ground between roots or add height with taller pots.

6)  Berm or Terrace

For problematic areas, consider a berm or terrace. Make sure you don’t cover more than a third of tree roots.  A raised bed will be easier to maintain and bring in plants closer to you for your enjoyment.

7) Shade Garden Success

If you are just starting out, select plants that are more WIDELY ADAPTABLE to various degrees of light and soil conditions.

Enjoy season long bursts of foliage color in the shade

I once had a shade garden that included hundreds of shade plants, but there were a handful that were able to tough it out better than others.  It was an easy care shade border that was beautiful 3 seasons of the year and a terrific place to unwind after a hectic day.  As the plants got bigger, they filled in nicely covering bare spots and reducing maintenance.

For gardening inspiration, check out these shade garden collections.

Our next article will feature 12 Best Shade Loving Plants for Your Garden.

Long-blooming Endless Summer Hydrangea

Our pick for Best New Shrub of the Decade! Hydrangea macrophylla Endless Summer brings a wealth of great features to gardeners nationwide.

Blooms in Zone 4 gardens! Finally, a mophead Hydrangea that will bloom in Zone 4 gardens across the country! This giant mophead Hydrangea was selected at Bailey Nurseries in Minnesota for its ability to bloom on new growth! Other mophead or macrophylla Hydrangeas bloom on last year’s growth (old wood), but Endless Summer Hydrangea blooms on both old AND new growth. So, in areas of extreme cold which can damage the old growth flower buds, you’ll get an entirely new flower show in mid summer & fall.

Useful as a Long Blooming Hedge Plant

Months of GIANT 10″ flower heads! Endless Summer Hydrangea begins its flower show in early summer & continues for over 5 months with its heavy reblooming flower display.  Mid-November of last year we STILL had flowers on our Endless Summer Hydrangea.

Best long-blooming flowering Hedge Plant we’ve found! Hydrangea Endless Summer makes a superb and long-flowering Hedge Plant growing to 4′ tall and 5′ wide. Used as a flowering hedge you get garden beauty as well as bouquets of fresh-cut Hydrangea flowers that last over 2 weeks in the vase!

Flowers can be either Pink or Blue depending on soil pH

Flower color changes with soil pH. As with all mophead Hydrangeas, the flower color will change according to your soil pH. Flowers are pink if you have more alkaline soil with a higher pH and are bright blue if you have more acidic soils with a lower pH.

Fall foliage display on Endless Summer Hydrangea

Don’t forget the fall FOLIAGE show! Many gardeners forget that the foliage of Endless Summer Hydrangea also changes color in the fall taking on fiery colors of orange & red before the leaves finally drop off.

You won’t be disappointed with this long-blooming Hydrangea which combines wonderfully with colorful Heucheras, bold-foliaged Hostas, & lacy Hardy Ferns!

Hakonechloa Aureola - the most elegant shade groundcover ever!

Hakonechloa produces a gorgeous mound of narrow, arching leaves  that is useful for bringing bright color to the shade garden. It has a graceful, almost tropical like habit and is considered by some to be one of the most stunning groundcovers for the shade garden. Two of the more popular varieties include  bright gold leaf All Gold and Aureola which has gold leaves with stripes of bright green.

I’ve known gardeners that have been  successful with growing Hakonechloa and others who struggle growing this shade loving groundcover.  Essentially, this is a slow growing shade perennial that takes more than a couple of years to become mature.

Design Tips

Hakonechloa works well in so many shade settings as a foliage plant. Use it singly, in containers, or mass as a ground cover in front of a shady border.  For inspiring design ideas & photography check out  Design Ideas with Hakonechloa –Elegant Shade Ground Cover. Since you get 3 seasons of foliage color it combines terrific with various colors of Heuchera.

1o Tips on Growing the most beautiful Hakonechloa ever!

1)     Soil. It thrives in a rich, somewhat acidic soil in well drained site. If you give them average soil, they will be small to average in size.

2)     Planting. Dig a hole 3 times the height & width of your container and fill in with good organic matter.  Take the time to do this because it will make a difference

3)    Exposure. Full sun to part shade.  Hakonechloa grows well in full sun (in the north anyway) Protect from the hot afternoon sun.

4)    Water. Hakonechloa require lots of moisture. Water frequently the first year. If you have an irrigation system – terrific.

5)    Keep away from tree roots. Best to plant near but not directly under trees or large shrubs. Depending on the type, tree & shrub roots are moisture & nutrient robbers.  Plants often will stay small and often struggle if competing with neighboring roots.

6)    Keep roots cool. Plant in a location where they will receive shade during the hottest part of the day.   Use 3” of mulch after planting to keep roots cool until plants become established.

7)   Feeding. Use a slow release fertilizer such as Osmocote according to package directions.

8)    Don’t cut back in the fall. If you are in a northern climate, wait until spring to either cut back or rake away previous year’s growth.

9)    Winter protection. My friend, Barb is a landscape designer in Minnesota (Zone 4) and use LOTS of Hakonechloa is in her garden design.  She uses pine boughs as a winter mulch. She has always been successful overwintering these plants.

10)   Planting & Spacing. I’ll often space Hakonechloa closer than other groundcovers (8-10” apart).  That way they fill in faster.  Plant in the spring so roots can establish themselves and be patient.

Container Growing

My friend Jayne, grows Hakonechloa in containers in her Zone 4 garden.  Here are her tips for container growing:

• Use drip irrigation  (keeps the plants  evenly moist)
• Slow Release liquid feed
• Replace soil every 2 years
• Bury the pots & cover with pine boughs for the winter

Growing Hakonechloa is a bit like reading Tolstoy’s War & Peace.  It is a bit of an undertaking, but don’t  let these proven  growing tips intimidate you from growing this magnificent shade loving groundcover in your perennial garden.

Where to Buy

The leaves of Hakonechloa fall nicely in one direction along this shaded pathway

My friend Jayne is gardener in Minnesota  (Zone 4) who has been in LOVE with Hakonechloa and growing it as a shade ground cover for  as long as I can remember. There are few grasses that are both deer proof & elegant yet impart an exotic, almost bamboo look that provides up to 9 months of interest!  The two varieties that we are both pretty fond of are Aureola & All Gold which do a bang up job livening up any shade garden. There is a new variety called Fubuki which I’m anxious to try this year.

Adding blue pottery creates maximum contrast & energy in this small space

Line a Shaded Pathway.  Use Hakone grass along a shaded pathway where  their leaves fall in one direction.  The above picture shows a pleasing shade perennial combination with dark foliage  Actaea or Cimicifuga.

Create Contrast! The narrow foliage of Hakonechloa with the bold, rounded foliage of Hosta makes this combination interesting!

Add blue! Put some quick finishing touches to your garden design by adding blue pottery placed next to your plants.

Create Contrast! The narrow foliage combines elegantly with the bold, rounded foliage of Hostas.

Raise it! This gardener raised this container - to better appreciate the arching leaves!

Raise It! Elevate your containers on the shaded patio or garden where you can appreciate the cascading foliage.

Shaded Entryway.  Place Hakonechloa pots along a shaded patio entryway. This softens the entryway in addition to being more welcoming to guests.

Hakonechloa is a wonderful shade plant to add to the garden. I hope you  enjoyed a few garden design ideas. I’m anxious to hear about yours!

Garden Tip:  Hakonechloa will have a brighter appearance if it receives some morning or filtered sun.

We’ve got more valuable garden tips on how to have success growing Hakonechloa coming next!

The cascading foliage looks elegant & softens this patio entryway

Do you have a favorite perennial pairing that makes you smile? One of my favorite shade gardening “pairs” is Tiarella and Heuchera (I’m particularly fond of Frosted Violet which has fantastic vigor and is both heat & drought tolerant). I have found both to be hard working shade ground covers that are easy care providing multi -seasonal interest.

Both are excellent for container gardening.  They do well if left outside during the winter  in my unprotected in my Zone 5 garden.

The spring flowers of Tiarella  continue to bloom sporadically in cooler climates and makes a charming carpet of foamy (and FRAGRANT) flowers which I LOVE edging a shaded garden path with.  Heucheras come in a wide range of foliage colors and are great anywhere you can provide protection from the hot afternoon sun.

Tiarella is a terrific choice for winter color. Their intricate evergreen leaves turn  intense burgundy shades in the winter which gives you something to enjoy when you get an occasional snow melt while reflecting on the growing season ahead.

Check out our Shade Perennial Garden Collections for more inspiring ideas for your shade garden.

Heuchera & Tiarella  – both oh-so-easy garden plants with color & interest and spring- winter interest.   What pairing makes you smile?