How to know what to plant in a shade garden

I haven’t always been a gardener

Today I’m going to tell you a story about How I became a shade gardener and how you can do it too.

When I was younger I never enjoyed gardening. I’m a nurturer by nature but somehow I never thought I had the talent or patience to grow plants. I think the sun and heat and bugs had something to do with it. Also, gardening was my mom and dad’s world and I was way too busy hanging out with my friends. But the first summer we were married and had a house of our own, we planted this enormous vegetable garden. We had no idea what we were doing and no tools to help us along the way.

It was a flop.

Lots of weeds and little crop made us decide to take a break the next year and buy our produce at the local farm stand. After that, it would be over 5 years before I would attempt any kind of garden planting again.

I remember one of my biggest mistakes along the way was transplanting what I thought would be a ground cover perennial to a new spot, only to realize I had relocated some crabgrass. 🙂 But the beauty with that epic fail was I never forgot what crabgrass looked like.

But after some time I started to get better at knowing plants’ names and where to place them for best growth. I fell in love with the idea that perennials could be planted and they would come up year after year.

Finding my Happy Place

When we were looking for a house to buy I really wasn’t looking for a place like this. The house was a normal colonial, which I like but the backyard was what made me say “yes,I want to make this place home”. It was full of hopes and dreams and I just knew that while it looked a little sad now it could be turned into something wonderful that we would enjoy coming home to.

After seeing this picture you may wonder about my taste, but I could see past the overgrown daylily beds to the bones of the structures here. I had never seen anything like it, I knew I was in for a ton of work, but I was ready for the challenge.

Cleaning up

That first summer we dug out daylilies until our muscles and bones creaked and groaned. I kept telling myself it will all be worth it. I just knew some hard work would pay off one day.

So many of the original plantings no longer worked where they had been first placed because the trees had grown large and the plants that once thrived in the sunshine now were completely shaded. Also when you plant perennials, you have to be aware that most plants spread and you will have to weed them out every year. Sometimes I feel like I pull as many perennials as I do weeds but I do love that they come up on their own year after year!

The daylilies could not be killed by spray only by digging out each bulb. Even after all these years I still find one popping up here or there each year.

Here are some of the plants I’ve found that work well in the shade

I have learned, often by trial and error, through the years how and what to plant in the shade. It has taken me a minute…or 5 years…. to figure some of this out and I continue to learn more. I love to learn.

I have found these are my number one plants that work well in the shade.

• Hosta’s
• Hydrangea’s
• Ferns
• Yellow Allysum
• Ivy
• Sedum
• Snow on the mountain
• Varegated Pachysandra
• Begonias
• Impatiens

One beautiful thing about shade is that your plants will be much better protected and you don’t have to worry too much about sun scorching.

After a few years of planting boxwoods and transplanting a variety of hostas, hydrangeas, daisies, ornamental grasses, and peonies the property started to show its former glory.

Many of the hostas on the property had been chewed off by the deer for so many years that when they started coming back they were just little nubs. But after a few years of transplanting and spraying Deer Stopper a couple of times a month on my hosta plants, which are now in the hundreds, I have been able to grow healthy and hearty plants.

Here is another picture of how the gardens looked in spring when we first walked the property.

And Here it is Today

First Look…..

And today

What we love most about our backyard gardens

The thing we absolutely love most about these gardens is sharing them with others. I am just the caretaker, the steward, the gardener with dirt stains on her fingers.

We firmly believe that anything we have been given is not for us alone. We were blessed not to just sit in the shower of blessing and think lucky me. No, every good gift we have been blessed with is meant to be given away. Because of that, we have used this space for many purposes over the 6 years we have lived here. So even if I can’t share these gardens with you in person I hope you can feel peaceful as you walk around the backyard with me through the video below.

And Today

Sometimes we don’t really know when it was that we started liking grown-up things. Or taking vitamins without being told to do so. Or just liking our sleep so much we go to bed early like an old person.

But somewhere along the way it happens. And the lady that had at one time transplanted crabgrass has turned into a lover of gardens.

Today when I step into my yard I feel embraced, sheltered, and surrounded by lush gardens that invite me to work out my frustrations on the weeds, breathe deep and pray as I water my plants, and let myself just be, as I sit and soak up the sounds of the birds.

Thanks for dropping by

Thank you for coming by today! I am planning to post two blog posts a week through the month of August to get caught up on posts that I have been missing for the past 9 months. I’m so excited to start giving you some fall inspiration as we think forward to all the exciting things the next few months will bring.

I’m grateful to be back here again. Until next time,

Happy Day,

Rose

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