Textured Tapestry of Plants
“The breezes taste
Of apple peel.
The air is full
Of smells to feel-
Ripe fruit, old footballs,
Burning brush,
New books, erasers,
Chalk, and such.
The bee, his hive,
Well-honeyed hum,
And Mother cuts
Chrysanthemums.
Like plates washed clean
With suds, the days
Are polished with
A morning haze.”
– John Updike, September
One of the first gardens I designed was a woodland garden. I remember looking at the overgrown grape vine, honeysuckle and poison ivy at the edge of a clients’ yard and wondering what was behind all that brush. What began as a simple inquiry turned into a 3 month project that resulted in my favorite garden I ever created. I’m not sure why it’s been my favorite, perhaps because it was one of my first, or that I personally removed and installed each component, or that the transformation was so dramatic. However, my delight in the garden was that it was so inviting, with its paths, its bench, its ever seasonally changing plant palette and its glorious shade. Shade gardening to me is exciting from the canopy of trees to the varied textures of ferns and tropicals that are at home here with the dappled sunlight. Let’s explore the many possibilities of shade gardening.
Texture
Texture in a garden to me is what separates the uninspired mass of greenery to the richness of intriguing plant varieties. I like to group plants in (3) main texture groups; fine, broad leaf, and tropical. Mixing these textures together really makes each plant stand out. I have created a table organizing some of my favorite texture plants suitable for shade. One thing I like to do is to take a cutting of all the plants I plan on using and lay them together to see how the different textures relate to one another. Mixing a Fern, Viburnum, and Philodendron together is much more exciting than placing a Ligustrum, Camellia and Viburnum together. Try it and see the dramatic difference.
Fine Texture: This group includes ferns, small leaved plants, grasses, mosses or other finely dissected and narrow leaves. I like to mass these plants against a backdrop of a larger texture.
Autumn Fern: All time favorite, evergreen and deer proof.
Holly Fern
Foxtail Fern: Excellent lime green texture
Boston Fern
Japanese Painted Fern
Australian Tree Fern
Liriope
Mondo Grass
Sagina and Selaginella: Fun little mosses, great in pots.
Boxwood
Lady Palm: Great accent, perfect in a courtyard, needs protection in the winter.
Mahonia
Podocarpus: Indispensable, tough, deer proof plant. One of the few plants that will grow beneath an overhang.
Cephalotaxus (Spreading Yew): Slow growing but beautiful once established. I have seen this used in large containers. It cascades wonderfully.
Nandina
Asiatic Jasmine
Broad Leaf Texture: This group is the middle of the road, your simple leaf variety. This group is often used as a foundation or screening planting.
Azaleas
Camellia
Ligustrum
Viburnum: there are several varieties to choose from; Suspensum, Odoratissimum and Awabuki.
Tropical Leaf Texture: This group includes the large leaf varieties, generally used as accents.
Cast Iron
Fatsia
Philodendron
Chinese Fan Palm
Elephant Ears
Color in the Shade Garden:
Yes, we can have color in our shade gardens! Besides the colorful impatiens and many varieties of begonias that do wonderful in the shade, look to leaf color to bring the color you seek. As an added bonus, these plants are very low maintenance.
Persian Shield: Hands down, this is both my favorite colorful shade plant and the most often asked about in the garden or container. It’s an iridescent purple that just can’t be beat for its intense color.
Coleus
Heuchera: There are so many varieties now of this Coral Bell, Caramel and Key Lime being (2) of my favorites.
Duranta: Try some of the chartreuse varieties.
Stromanthe
Red Sister Ti Plant
Caladiums
Gingers: These are a much underutilized group of plants that I believe are the jewels of a Southern garden. The variegated yellow Alpinia is the most recognized in this category as is the White Butterfly Ginger. There is a whole host though to explore such as: Costus, Curcuma, Globba and Kaempferia. If you are looking for a Hosta substitute, this is the group to look at.
Ground Covers for Shade:
Unfortunately or fortunately depending on your perspective, grass does not grow well if at all in the shade. Ground covers, once established, provide a great, low maintenance alternative.
Algerian Ivy
Asiatic Jasmine
Ajuga
Mondo grass
Q & A
I just bought a mum. How long does it bloom and can I plant it in the ground?
Mums are a great pick me up at the end of summer. Who can resist their cheery bright colors? Placed at the front door they just say “Hi, I’m happy, welcome home.” Mums typically bloom for about (1) month. When purchasing, look for tight blooms, just beginning to open. They generally will decline if rained on heavily. You can deadhead the blooms to keep the plant looking fresh. Mums are perennial and do wonderful planted in a sunny to part sunny site. They will repeat bloom for you several times if you continue to cut them back after each bloom.
Published in Pink Magazine – September 2009