Starting a Shade Garden...

The shade garden can be exploding with color and texture. No matter how much shade is in your landscape, the right flowers, plants, bushes and bulbs will grow in this area when given a chance. As there are various types of shade, you will need to choose the plants that are 'right' for the type of shade you have: partial, dense, full, or filtered shade. In starting a shade garden, one of the easiest shade gardens will be the filtered shade garden. What you need to do first is look at the trees or bushes that are making this area a filtered shade garden. Pruning off the lower branches on taller bushes and on the tree will allow additional light into your garden. Because you are planning a filtered shade garden, you do want some amount of sunlight in that garden below the tree.

Thinning out the bottom saplings that are trying to grow from the tree is needed at this time to ensure they do not grow up in your garden. Underbrush and thorny bushes should be cut down and dug up at this time before starting your shade garden.

Now you can work on the soil that is in the area that you want to create that new garden. Adding organic materials, more soil, compost, manure or other types of nutrients to the soil will prepare the fine garden bed that will hold your shade plants.

When possible, do not disturb the roots of the tree that will be in or around the garden area. Cutting or disturbing the roots of a tree can cause damage or death to the tree over time. Working with the soil and adding the needed materials to make your garden about six inches deep is going to be the ultimate situation for your new plants.

After planting your first shade plants in the garden continue to water them every few days until the roots begin to 'take hold' and support the plants. When placing your plants in the soil of your new garden, mulching around the plants will hold the water in the soil for your plants to thrive best.

Shade Garden Plants

Do you have a landscape that involves trees, shrubs, and bushes? When your landscape is filled with shade during certain times of the day, you can still have wonderful plants, flowers and color using the shade garden plants. You might find it most interesting that within the shade garden plants, there are additional types of shade needs. Shade gardening does give you various opportunities to change your landscape and to enhance the tree line of your yard. Shade gardens give many gardeners a more relaxing feel, as a place where you can stroll and be calming in the shade. The sun areas of your garden and landscape are lively and energetic.

To discover more about the different shade areas of a garden, take a walk through this area, or walk through the woods. Taking a walk through the woods you will find that sunlight does still hit some areas and some soil is in the shade all the time.

Filtered shade is an area where the sun will lightly hit. This indirect sunlight filters to the ground between leaves, branches, and other bushes. An example of where filtered shade is - this the soil at the bottom of a very tall tree that has branches that have been thinned out. The thinning of the tree allows sun to still fall on the ground below but in an indirect manner.

Partially shaded areas of your garden are different from the filtered shade areas. The portions of your landscape or gardens that does get sun four or five hours a day, but then remains in the shade of a tree or house the remaining portion of the day is a partially shaded area. The plants that are sensitive to the high temperatures of the full sun in the afternoon are plants that you will grow in this area.

Full shade areas of your garden are the areas of your garden that remain in the dark for most of the day. Sunlight may shine in this area of the landscape when trees loose their leaves or for less than an hour each day. Choice plants that mature in the spring or produce flowers in the fall are the plants that grow in this portion of your landscape.

Dense shade is yet another area of your landscape where the sun never shines and the area never do receive partial shade. Dense shade areas of your landscape include those that are beside fences, houses, in the thick of the wooded area or similar type areas.

Read the information that is available when purchasing plants that you want to place in shade gardens. Some shade plants still require some amount of sun as described above for the best results.

Gordon Goh is author of the free, informative website Simply Flower Garden offering quality useful tips for flower garden lovers.

---

Porch Swing Places: Where to Put a Porch Swing

So you've purchased a Porch Swing (or are about to)... Read More

Vegetable Growing for Beginners

If you have never grown vegetables before the first thing... Read More

Gardening for Kids

Children are continually bombarded with advertising for fast food and... Read More

Lawn Disease And What To Do About It

Every lawn, whether new or established, is susceptible to a... Read More

Delavays Blueberry (Vaccinium delavayi)

Whether we know it or not, most of us are... Read More

Garden Fencing

I made my very first garden when I was six... Read More

How To Brighten Up Your Home With These Flower Arrangement Ideas

A beautiful flower arrangement piece can become the focal point... Read More

Add Value to Your Home - Landscaping

Just recently my friend had his house appraised between $800,000... Read More

Lady Bugs Are Your #1 Natural Pest Control

First, this bug has many names. Some of it's names... Read More

Thyme: The Herb of Courage

Garden thyme, fresh or dried, alone or combined with parsley... Read More

Maintaining Oxygen Levels in Fish and KOI Ponds

Severe environmental stressors are the most frequent causes of sudden... Read More

The Incredible Daylily

Some people have referred to daylilies as the poor man's... Read More

Solar Garden Lights

Solar lights are very popular for lighting yards and gardens.... Read More

You Take The Vacation - Not Your Garden

If you are planning to go on vacation, there are... Read More

Storm Damage and Mature Tree Pruning

One winter evening I was working on the computer when... Read More

Adirondack Chairs - The Proper Way to Care for Them

The Adirondack chair is unlike any other chair every made.... Read More

Growing Tomatoes Organically

Tomato Seeds Vs. Tomato Seedlings?Whether you start your own tomato... Read More

You Say Tomato I Say Mosquito

Gathering tomatoes or other fruits of the garden might not... Read More

Earthworm Friends in the Garden

Earthworms are a gardener's best friend.Research has shown that earthworm... Read More

Amish Furniture on the Front Porch

While shopping on line the other day at www.stoveramishfurniture.com, I... Read More

Fall Garden Planning - Garden Plans for Next Spring and Ordering by Mail

It's August, the weather has cooled a bit here and... Read More

Patio Design and Patio Furniture - The Use of Focal Points

A focal point is an important design element; it is... Read More

Brilliant Beetroot!

Are you looking for a truly versatile vegetable to grow... Read More

Budget For Your Garden

Have you ever thought about how much it costs to... Read More

A Garden Bench: A Beautiful Addition To Any Garden

Okay, so you have spent hours upon hours creating the... Read More

Landscaping Tips

When you want to create a beautiful and functional landscape,... Read More

Buying Teak Wood Furniture Responsibly

Teak has many qualities that make the indoor and outdoor... Read More

How to Attract Butterflies to Your Garden

The flittering of the butterfly through your garden is no... Read More

Turn Your Patio Into A Voluminous Vegetable Garden

My first apartment was a second-story condo in an urban... Read More

Catch a Leprechaun in Your Garden

There is no mention to be found of female leprechauns... Read More

Make Your Fresh Cut Roses Last Longer!

Women adore getting flowers, most especially roses, as it is... Read More

About Hummingbirds and How to Attract Them to Your Garden

Visualize watching a bright green hummingbird in your garden moving... Read More

Paving Stones

Imagine a beautiful pattern of paving stones as the central... Read More