Out of the Shadows

But what if you’ve got a north-facing plot or one that’s overshadowed by neighbouring buildings or tall trees? Creating an enticing space in a gloomy spot can seem hardly worth the effort.

But before you order a lorry load of gravel to cover up bare flowerbeds, or opt to replace a struggling lawn with a patch of fake grass, it’s worth considering the alternatives.

There’s a whole tribe of beautiful plants that perform best in low light levels and if you choose these and avoid sun worshippers, which will only sulk, then you’ll have the ingredients for an exciting garden that will give you lots of pleasure. And if you take some practical steps to improve conditions then you’ll greatly widen the range of plants that you can grow.

First improve your lot
You can’t change the aspect of your garden or move adjacent buildings, but if your shade is cast by a high hedge or overhanging trees, then pruning these back to more manageable levels will let in more light. You don’t need to fell trees or shrubs, but by lifting the canopy, where you remove lower branches, you’ll brighten things up considerably.

Often the ground under trees or beneath hedges is dry, starved of nutrients and riddled with roots, making for tough growing conditions, but by adding a generous layer of mulch, and topping it up regularly, you’ll start to see a difference. Home made compost and leafmould will all transform your soil over time, so don’t throw grass clippings, fallen leaves or other garden waste into your brown recycling bin, but transform them instead into the garden equivalent of gold dust.

Or get instant results by creating raised beds and filling these with topsoil. Make a simple frame from lengths of timber and place these where you want things to grow. They needn’t be deep, 20cm is enough to give the roots of young plants space to get established.

Ditch the lawn
Grass doesn’t grow well in shade or where it has to compete with hedges for water and nutrients, so instead of persisting with a shabby lawn why not encourage ground-cover plants such as vinca, small-leaved ivy or Cotoneaster horizontalis to scramble over the area instead or use different evergreen perennials to create a tapestry effect. The results will be so much better.

Go Green
Few of the plants that grow well in shady spots have significant flowers, what they do have is fabulous foliage. Make the most of this by creating contrasts between big, small, frilled and lacy leaves. Play with shades of green and variegated stripes and consider flowers as a bonus.

Create a temporary show
Freshly-planted tulips contain everything they need to grow in their first year. So as long as they aren’t growing in waterlogged or completely dry soil, most will perform well even in shady areas. So treat them like annuals and replace them every year. You can always lift the bulbs as the foliage fades and move them to a sunnier area to build up their strength for the following year. Other bulbs, including bluebells, will thrive under trees, flowering in spring then dying down as the canopy closes over.

PLANTS FOR SHADE

There are lots of beautiful and undemanding plants that will thrive in shady conditions. Here are some of the best.

Heuchera
Nothing works harder than a heuchera to keep that shady spot in your garden looking good all year round. The evergreen foliage is a constant presence and the many different varieties have leaves in shades from deepest burgundy to lime green, often with attractive markings.  Heuchera ‘Paris’ is a favourite for its long-lasting pink flowers, which are held on long stems above the leaves. Make space too for tiarellas, which are similar in growth and habit, and also for anything labelled ‘X heucherella’, which is a cross between the two.

Erythronium
Dog’s tooth violets love a shady spot beneath shrubs or trees where decades of fallen leaves have  produce humous-rich, free draining soil. In spring their nodding, reflexed petals appear above mottled foliage. Plant the bulbs in autumn with the more pointed end facing upwards, then leave them undisturbed to grow into large clumps.

Epimedium
In spring heart shaped leaves appear, followed by spidery flowers held on wiry stems. The flowers can be pink, white, yellow, lilac or orange but it’s the foliage that makes epimedium a good choice for moist soil that’s in shade for part of the day.

Pulmonaria
Many lungworts have silvery splashes on their leaves and flowers in shades from pink to blue that appear in spring. Pulmonaria ‘Blue Ensign’ is one of the best and, like all of the lungworts, it benefits from being dug up and divided every three or four years. So start with one plant and eventually you’ll have many.

Euphorbia amygdaloides
The common name of this evergreen euphorbia is ‘wood spurge’, which is a clue to where it grows best. It thrives in those dry, shady spots where nothing else will grow and the lime green flowers, which appear in late spring, are brilliant for brightening up dark corners. Because of its suckering habit it spreads easily, providing reliable ground cover.

Hosta
Nothing does better in a damp, shady spot than a hosta and there are so many now available that they make quite a show on their own. From minature Hosta ‘Blue Mouse Ears’ to giant Hosta sieboldiani, which has huge, sculptural leaves, there’s a wide range of sizes, foliage colour and variegation to choose from.

Bergenia
Evergreen ‘elephants ears’ produce spikes of pink flowers in March and April, but it’s their tough, leathery leaves that make them useful in the garden. Seek out varieties, such as Bergenia cordifolia ‘Purpurea’ which turn vibrant shades of red and purple in the winter.

Polygonatum
It can be tricky to find tall plants for shady places, but Solomon’s seal does the job. It produces arching stems from which, in early summer, dangle small, bell-shaped white flowers. It goes well with ferns, which relish similar conditions.

Eranthis hyemalis
Winter aconites are one of the first flowers to appear, opening bright yellow globes in damp, shady places even before snowdrops have appeared. Plant them beneath the canopy of deciduous trees or around the skirts of shrubs and allow them to spread out.

Convallaria majalis
Plant lily of the valley in a moist, shady spot and it will start to spread until it forms large clumps of fresh green foliage, followed in May by one of the most deliciously-scented flowers in the garden. Classic lily of the valley is white, but there’s a pink variety too.