Shady areas in landscapes and gardens require plants that need or tolerate shade.
If you need some ideas, attend the class “Some Shady Characters: Annuals and Perennials for Shady Sites” on Sunday, February 16, 2:00 pm at the Columbus Community Building.
Extension Master Gardener Volunteer Marilyn Schmidt will be teaching this class for the general public. Schmidt has been a Master Gardener for 22 years. She is well known for her knowledge about flowering plants. The plants she talks about will be great choices for shady sites.
There is no charge for this class and registration is not needed. It will be held in the Creativity Corner of the Columbus Public Library.
Attend for some shady plant ideas and to start thinking and visiting about the upcoming gardening season.
When selecting plants for shade, not all shade is the same. Plants are often listed as needing or tolerating dappled, light, full or deep shade.
Knowing the difference and selecting plants accordingly will increase blooming success.
Dappled shade is sunlight filtering through a fairly thin tree canopy such as trees with smaller leaves and less dense crowns. Light or part shade is considered to be about 3 to 6 hours of sunlight. Full shade is less than 3 hours of sunlight.
Deep or heavy shade would be almost no direct sunlight during the day.
How much shade or sun an area receives can be deceiving. It pays to spend some time observing planting locations during the growing season to gain a better idea of actual light levels. Shade from trees and structures like sheds or house overhangs can make an area much shadier than expected.
When selecting plants, don’t overlook differences in light intensity and temperatures.
Three to six hours of sunlight on the east side of a home is less intense and cooler than it would be on the west side of a home. Plants listed as needing cooler growing conditions would not be a good choice for the west side of an unshaded home.
Plants may also be described as tolerating dry shade. These are dryer areas created by tree canopies, house eaves and overhangs, or anything that blocks rainfall. After rainfall, it may be assumed watering will not be needed for a while, but areas where rainfall doesn’t reach may remain dryer than expected.
On the other hand, the soil of shady areas will dry out less quickly than full sun locations. It is equally important to avoid overwatering plants in shady areas. Root and crown rots are common problems of perennial flowers. These rots are promoted by overly wet soils.
If you have areas under trees you’d like some flower color, consider using containers of annuals. Because of competition for light, moisture and soil nutrients, it is more challenging to grow annual flowers under tree shade. If annuals are planted, the damage to tree roots each year from digging is not good for the trees either.
The containers themselves will add color and interesting texture or structure to a landscape area. And there are many annuals that will grow well in dappled to heavy shade.
Again, for ideas on shade tolerating or loving plants, attend the class at the Columbus Public Library on Feb. 16 at 2 p.m. with Marilyn Schmidt.