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Many gardeners who turn their entire lawn into a virtual prize of imagination and artistry with their gardening skills throw up their hands in despair at a small shady corner. Shade gardening is very possible; it just takes careful selection of the plants that you choose.
One thing to keep in mind as you are planning your shade garden is that you may want to choose a plant with light colored foliage or flowers. The darkness of the shade will benefit from the visual punch of light colored foliage. It will also make that area more visible and brighter.
The first thing to do when you plan to plant your shade garden is to decide what type of shade you are working in. Are you under a large tree or against the side of your house? Does the area stay damp all of the time or have good drainage? All of these are important factors to consider, because shade or sun is only a small part of gardening. Soil temperature and moisture are equally important. Another thing to consider when planning your shade garden is to add some plants that do not flower. Ivy, hostas and ferns are all wonderful shade loving plants that do not flower. They do however have interesting textured leaves, and beautiful color variations. By using these plants interspersed among your flowers, you will really increase the “wow” factor of your garden.
Some wonderful flowers to consider are Impatiens, which does require regular watering, but is so bountiful with its blooms that you will not mind. Violas, which are small little flowers that will many times come back year after year, and also slowly spread. Oak Leaf Hydrangea is a gorgeous shrub that has beautiful flower clusters, and can grow right against the side of a building. Begonias and Astilbe are two flowers that are relatively common in flower gardens that adapt well to shade.
Plan and plant your shade garden just as you would any other but there are a few things that you should keep in mind. If your shady area is also damp, you should be very vigilant for signs of rot and fungus in your plants. This can be treated with a commercial spray, but is most effective if treated early. Also, some trees just do not share nutrients well, and no matter what you plant under them, they will not do well. If you plant something, tend to it and it still does not survive, perhaps you should just plan to mulch under that tree.
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