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Colors of
Shade
Firefly Heuchera (Coral Bells)
Creating a
shade garden.
Amend the
soil. A little extra soil amending is probably
in order. Most shade loving and shade tolerant
plants prefer a soil with a reasonable amount of
organic matter.
Irrigate.
Most shade plants will require regular irrigation in
Wyobraska gardens (although shade gardens will use
less water than the average lawn). Drip irrigation
which waters the entire bed is the preferable
method.
Mulch.
It’s essential.
Don’t forget
the bench or sitting area. A shade garden is almost
certain to be a popular spot for garden visitors
through the summer. Don’t forget to create a spot
to be in your shade oasis. |
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Shade is a valuable commodity
in Wyobraska’s bright, sunny summertime
landscapes. On a hot sunny day, those rare shady
spots are landscape oases—places to escape the
eye-straining brightness and the skin-burning heat
of the summertime sun. Traditional shade gardens
tend to be dominated by plants whose major visual
interest is their foliage—plants like hostas and
ferns. These are plants which tolerate the deep
shade of landscapes in the eastern and southern
U.S. But Wyobraska’s sunny climate and scarcity of
dense, overstory shade trees means that most of the
“shady spots” in Wyobraska landscapes offer a
relatively bright shade.
The comparatively bright shade
found in Wyobraska landscapes turns out to be an
ideal environment for many shade-loving and shade
tolerant flowers in addition to a surprising number
of the traditional shade foliage plants. As a
result, Wyobraska homeowners have the opportunity to
create exceptionally colorful and attractive shade
gardens and landscapes.
Heuchera (Coral Bells)
These popular shade tolerant perennials seem to
perform best in Wyobraska landscapes when they
receive about half-day sun. Coral bells are noted
for their airy bright red flowers from late spring
through early summer. Extensive hybridizing in
recent years has produced a large number of
cultivars, most of which seem to be performing well
in local gardens and landscapes. In my experience
the green foliaged varieties seem to be more soil
adaptable than the maroon foliaged varieties.
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Hosta. I see hosta
being grown successfully all around Wyobraska.
Their large horizontally angled leaves make them an
effective shade groundcover. Most have an
attractive flower ranging in color from white to
lavender. They do not retain a wintertime presence
in the landscape, but do begin growing early in
spring and are quite tolerant of freezing
temperatures early in the growing season.
Ligularia
I prefer the round-leafed varieties of Ligularia.
They flower with an attractive deep yellow
daisy-type flower stalk over 2’ foliage in mid to
late summer. ‘Othello’ has green foliage with a
hint of maroon color in the leaves. ‘Brit Marie
Crawford’ is a newer variety with rich maroon
leaves. Ligularia prefer full shade in Wyobraska
gardens.
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Previous Articles
April 27, 2006
Crazy Clematis
May 04, 2006
Ornamental Grasses
May 11, 2006
Perennials
May 18, 2006
Herbs
May 25, 2006
Hummingbird Garden
Party
June 1, 2006
Gardening with Kids
June 8, 2006
Wildflower Week Coming Soon
A Prairie Garden Journal
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Annabelle Hydrangea.
The lushness of this plant’s foliage and flowers
belies its hardiness and soil adaptability. The
large round white blooms develop in early summer and
last until fall, drying on the plant for a very
attractive winter interest. This hydrangea should be
considered a perennial rather than a shrub, though,
and it should be cut back to the ground every
spring. New leaves and stems grow quickly to form a
2-4’ plant each summer. Appears to be adaptable to
most Wyobraska soils.
Aconitum (Monkshood)
This very well-behaved perennial grows to 5 feet
tall with attractive dark green foliage through the
summer, then flowers in late September into October
with a beautiful clear blue flower. Plant it next
to a shade loving shrub with good red fall color
(like nannyberry viburnum) and it’s a striking
autumn combination.
Ajuga ‘Chocolate chip’
This relatively new ajuga appears to be a little
more vigorous than most ajugas. Smaller leafed than
standard ajugas, without the crinkled leaf. It
also has a more consistent maroon foliage than most
ajugas. Light blue flowers mid spring. |
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Lamium
(Silver nettle). To brighten up a shady spot in
your landscape with a tough groundcover, try lamium.
It has dense, variegation over a light green
foliage. Light purple flowers add extra interest.
It appears to be among the most durable of shade
groundcovers for Wyobraska landscapes. Tolerant of
part sun.
Morden Centennial Shrub Rose
Shrub roses. Don’t
overlook shrub roses as shade plants. Most shrub
roses will actually perform better in Wyobraska if
planted in a location where they receive mid-day
shade. The edge of a shade garden is generally an
ideal location for almost any of the adaptable shrub
roses.
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