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A reader recently requested help in identifying plants that will thrive in a garden that has very little sun in winter but gets several hours of midday sun by summer. Since this is a common situation here, with all the steep hillsides, towering trees and small town lots packed with buildings that block the low winter sun, it is a challenge that many of us, including myself, must face. In January and February, you may experience almost no direct sun, but as the year turns toward spring, more and more sun will strike directly in the garden. By summer, many of the beds and decks may receive sun from about 10:00am until 2:00pm or so, during the hottest part of the day. Obviously, true shade lovers will be unhappy with that much sun, but many sun lovers will languish in the sunless winters, and the limited sun hours in summer. What will thrive in this situation?
Two noteworthy examples of plant contrariness in my own garden: Roses need sun, we're always told. In my garden, three roses thrive with only 3 to 4 hours of summer sun, and none in winter. The old-fashioned climber 'Alberic Barbier', with glossy disease-free foliage and creamy white semi-double fragrant flowers, blooms each spring for about 6 weeks. It is about as trouble free as a rose can be, and has never seemed to mind the limited direct sun that it receives in my garden. The English rose 'Graham Thomas' is equally trouble-free and free-blooming, though it has not remained a shrub but instead has climbed two stories tall to get those precious 4 hours of sun above the roof. The deep golden yellow flowers are mind-blowingly fragrant; they are produced in mass profusion in spring, and then in less profuse waves throughout the summer. And the small florabunda 'Gruss an Aachen' blooms repeatedly all summer with pale pink flowers of exquisite old-fashioned form and wonderful fragrance. There are undoubtedly other roses that will tolerate some shade, though most authorities will tell you that they must have full sun. Mine would probably prefer full sun, could they talk, but they've repeatedly performed handsomely with what I was able to give them. (Learn about organic rose care with UCSC Alan Chadwick Garden Manager Orin Martin on Saturday April 29, 10am-noon, at San Lorenzo Garden Center, 235 River Street, Santa Cruz. Friends of the UCSC Garden sponsor this free seminar. Call 459-3240.) Many rhododendrons don't seem to mind gloomy conditions in winter, yet will happily welcome the summer sunshine in coastal gardens. (If you garden inland, select only rhodies listed as being sun tolerant.) Most garden centers, and books on rhododendrons, can advise you on which species and cultivars want sun for best bud set. These hardy evergreen shrubs are handsome in all seasons, and stunning when they are in bloom. And for those of you in the country, deer won't usually eat them. (Visit the free 31st Annual Flower Show of the Monterey Bay chapter of the American Rhododendron Society on Saturday April 29, 10am-4pm, also at San Lorenzo Garden Center. Call 685-2915.) In a future column, I'll discuss other plants that you can count on in those problematic sun/shade spots. In the meantime, enjoy the spring sun that is at last showing its face! |
Sun/Shade plants
Sometimes, gardeners have
to experiment to find solutions. Though none of us wants to condemn a plant to
a slow and steady decline (and our pocketbooks to unnecessary expense,) many
plants are more resilient than we expect, and will surprise us by performing in
what should be unsuitable situations. I am continually amazed by plants that
seem perfectly happy in far less sun than they are reputed to need. And of
course the others, that really should love a particular garden situation, that
languish in spite of great TLC by the gardener. So if your garden provides
seasonal changes in the light received, don't be afraid to try plants that are
borderline according to the authorities.
