It's heading toward springtime, I have a brand new yard to plant, and I'm looking for ideas. Who wants to show off their shade garden?!
Let's get some shade garden pictures posted here for a little spring rejuvenation and inspiration.
I moved into a new house last fall and didn't have time to do much of anything before the weather was too cold for planting. But I did manage to at least pull together some plants for this tiny part-shade patch. Here it is freshly planted last year...
^_^
This is shortly after planting this bed last summer. Dense shade.
Opp's, wrong photo, try this.
Same bed, 2007
wow, that filled in really nicely!
Gorgeous threegardeners and CountryGardens! Are those tons of impatiens in the last photo? For some reason I've never had luck growing them in my container plantings (silly, I know), but I really should try them in my shade beds this year.
The impatiens are 2007. The other things were planted in 2008. No impatiens!
It was hard picking a picture, to many shade gardens, not enough good pictures.
Back part of this is the one with the new Hostas. To the right is the picture I posted by mistake.
Bernie
Beautiful gardens!
Here's my garden that needs some color. I have planted impatiens in the past, and they are beautiful, but I'd like a perennial. Are there any caladiums that don't have to be pulled and stored in zone 7b? We've trimmed trees since this picture, and I'm going to have to wait until they leaf out to see if I've still got full shade, or if I could consider it partial.
Lynn
hey Bernie - would you mind sharing the names of your hostas in pic #1? They are beautiful!
They are so old, we don't know what they are. Definitely need to be redone this year. I will dig & divide, then pot up the extras & sell them cheap.
Did I hear you were going to KY RU. I could bring some there.
Bernie
Wish I could, but no. If you decide you want to mail (bareroot) a couple, please dmail me. I particularly like the one on the far left. Sure wish we new the names.
I have never had plants in our back yard so I am wanting to do a hosta garden in the back since it is so shady. People who lived here before us, didn't have anything. Not even grass. :( I am starting from scratch.
"scratch" sure would be nice! I would really look for the best layouts and really plan.. When I started I knew absolitly nothing and just stuck plants in the ground. Now I really want to move lots of things ar ound for the texture effect. I may this summer. Huchreras of all colors by the hostas. That looks really pretty and interesting. Big clusters of hostas. Yellows and stripes and green. I really love the yellow and lemons colors for hostas. Bought several of them last summer. Smiling. Can't wait to see them! Ronna
Ronna, we have a small pond going in close to the tree we got each other for valentine's day. :)
Our 5 year anniversary is the 20th of this month (first day of spring) and we promised that we would work on this to make the house more of a home. :)
Our boys have never been able to come out here because of all of the mud. Kinda sad really.
The main plan is to install the small pond (100 gallons) buy as many hostas & ferns we can afford and keep going from there. We have alot of stone already to build a few steps and to go around the pond. Basically we lack good weather, time, and plants galore. lol
I will post pic when we're done.
I'll definitely send you some Hostas. I have some left from a couple plants I divided last year, if they made it through the winter. Also have some that I planted to close together. I need to move them around so there will be some extras there too.
Ronna,
What do you mean, make a plan ? I have been here since 1982 & only stick things where there is a little hole. Fall of 2007, I made an Iris bed, since I got a ton of plants from Round up's. I have about 20 kinds of plants in there now.
Last fall I bought Iris on a Co-op here & needed to burn off another patch of grass for them. Then I hosted a RU here & a DG member from Twin Cities brought odels of them. Of course I needed some of them, too. More plants will mean more burned off lawn.
Like one DG'er said at the RU, not much future in grass!
I am planning on a new pond with a stream & waterfall this summer. At least get started on it.
This is the crowded Hosta Bed.
Bernie - that is just beautiful! Everything looks so happy there.
Yes, please when the time comes, just Dmail me with your price & address & I can send you money however you like - PayPal, check, money order or whatever.
Thanks again! I can't wait for spring!
Lots of great inspiration here! Keep the posts coming--I'm making notes. ;)
Very nice CountryGardens! I want to do the same this summer. Love all the different colors and textured! Ronna
Astilbe and ferns
farfuguim, ligularia, hostas ferns, etc. etc.
Beautiful stacked stone wall, doss. Our lot is flat, flat, flat.
I am lucky to be on a slope. It makes landscaping (once you've got the wall done) pretty easy. It's hard to go wrong.
Bernie's gardens are beautiful...planned or not. Another big thank you Bernie for hosting the Fall RU at your home. It is always a great time with great plants, great food and gracious hosts.
Here is one of my beds in early June 2008. By the end of the summer it is much more filled in. It lies between the house/deck on terraced beds, and off of the pic to the right is a steep drop down to the lake.
Love your stacked walls too Marie. Lovely setting.
Thank you.
I'm very pleased with the result, but a real bugger to work in. A friend thought that you'd need to be part mountain goat to garden in that spot. There is a 5 foot high retaining wall just off to the right of the pic.
My shade garden is on the north side of the house. This is from last year.
When the hostas are still small I have a tendency to plant things where I should not then they get totally covered by the big leaves.
I love corydalis,but have a hard time keeping them.
Sorry still no plants in Michigan yet.... Boo Hoo!
Hellebores and ferns.
Doss - what's the creeping stuff in your picture? Is is creeping thyme? Love how it looks with your pavers.
It's baby tears. I have to be careful to keep it back or it would take over. Only a houseplant for your zone though.
I have wanted to try corydalis. Gardengus, what do you think is the problem with yours not sticking around? (We're in the same zone, so I wonder if I'd be wasting my time with it.)
Don't forget about grasses. I think they can look great in a shady place.
Here's a shady part of my yard.
Don't mind the wire cages - just my method of bunny / deer protection...
Here's a link to a good Deer repellent.
http://www.treeworld.com/
I tried it a couple years ago when deer were giving me fits. I had a spray bottle. Couples shots to each plant & the problem stopped immediately.
It's for sale at a lot of garden centers. I just used this web site to show what it is.
Very pretty garden.
Bernie
This message was edited Mar 17, 2009 9:15 PM
I like baby tears, doss. Hard to believe such a teeny little plant is capable of taking over. I think I am going to get rid of my golden creeping Jenny this year (or try to)....people tell me it doesn't kill the plants it grows around, but I'm still nervous because of the aggressive spread rate. Mine is with Japanese Ferns and hosta, and I don't see how the fern can push up thru it.
Kayly, I wish I knew why (about the corydalis) I think it may be water, last year we had a very wet spring and there were more seedlings than normal. I do not normally water the shade garden behind the house unless it is exceptionally dry.
The yellow do much better than any of the other colors, I was successful with it for about six years.
Very pretty wee robin. It's a lovely combination. I'm a big fan of hakone grass and use it whereever I can. I even grow it in full sun - not the yellow kind but the variegated kind.
This is probably my favorite combination in my garden...
Love Pat hosta with maidenhair and Japanese painted ferns and Bridal Veil Astilbe. I just wish Astilbe bloomed longer.
Or, how about a different grass this time...
