Immersed in Shade
Of all my gardens, my family's favorite are the shade gardens. Calm, peaceful and truly easy care, they are my favorite, too. The bulk of our outdoor living is centered in the backyard under a canopy of tall trees. The stone patio, gazebo and garden shed are entirely immersed in a tapestry of shade loving shrubs, small trees, perennials and ferns.
Plants are chosen for their tolerance of dry conditions, requiring minimal care throughout the seasons. The tall white pines, paper birch, northern white cedar and sugar maple trees all provide dappled shade and protection from the hot southern sun. An unfortunate ‘arborist accident’ in the fall of 2021 saw the demise of our 20+ year old Japanese maple ‘Crimson Queen’ (in photo at the top of this page and in this video). Happily, its replacement was installed in spring of 2022, restoring the important purple foliage focal point among a sea of a hundred shades of green.
The shade garden provides substantial habitat for wild life year round. An impressive array of songbirds and woodpeckers provide non-stop action at the feeders from sun up to sun down. House wrens take up residence in the two bird houses and are constantly hopping about the leaf litter and moss, scavenging for insets for their hatchlings. Wrens are a constant source of song and amusement, singing their hearts out from early May until September. Dusk brings brown bats picking insects in mid flight and flying squirrels sneaking seed from the bird feeders. We've learned to mostly cohabitate with the chipmunks, squirrels and rabbits. Our resident opossum ‘Wally’ is active at night, eating grubs and insects and the occasional offering of apples and grapes.
Shade Loving Plants
Jack-in-the-pulpits grown from seed
Shade gardens are the sophisticated foil to the flamboyant sun gardens. The gallery below is proof that many plants thrive in light to deep shade. In fact, it's actually easier to keep plants looking healthy and happy in shade than it is in sun! My shade garden is the first to wake up in early April, before the deciduous woodland trees leaf out. Gallanthus, epimedium, uvularia, anemonella, columbine and hellebores are the early risers, along with the spring ephemerals bloodroot, celadine poppy, shooting star, trillium and jack-in-the-pulpit (native arisaema triphyllum) that I propogate annually from seed. Solomon’s seal and toad lily brighten up the shade with graceful, arching variegated foliage and bloom.
Next, come the broad leaf hosta, European ginger, heuchera, and ligularia which hold their own right up until frost. Delicate foliage and bloom are found in the ferns, bleeding hearts, goat’s beard, ladies mantle, brunnera, tiarella, and ground covers. The soft emerald green of the moss garden lends an extra layer of plush interest.
The resulting tapestry of foliage and delicate flowers is captivating and lends just the perfect setting for outdoor relaxation. Blooms take a back seat to foliage, but still, something is always emerging and seeking attention, just in a more subdued fashion. If I were forced to choose only one type of garden for our property, it would definitely be shade. Here’s another glorious shade garden that I designed for a friend!
Shade garden photos show progression of foliage, bloom and color throughout the seasons. Click any photo for more information.
