Made in the Shade

Images: Purple & pink hybrid asters, Red Twig Dogwood (with white berries) Bush, Variegated Hosta, orange Toad Lily, and Japanese Forest Grass.

Autumn is a time when shade areas can be bare or mostly weed infested.

In the spring, it seems difficult to remember to landscape with fall flowers and foliage in mind.

Some of the great color and texture effects in the fall are berries. The Red Twig Dogwood thrives in the shade, has white flowers in the spring and white berries in the fall and winter seasons.

Although I'll write more on this another time, asters are a bright and durable fall blooming plant. They gently spread and many do well in adverse conditions such as shade and clay soil.

Everyone understands the value of hostas in a shade garden but too often they are pushed to simply fill in where grass won't grow instead of using as a landscape element.

There are few ornamental grasses that do well in shade. I mentioned earlier I was trying Japanese Forest Grass. It is doing pretty good this summer although not gaining in size. Blue Dune grass is thriving everywhere but beware it is highly invasive.

Sometimes it's a good idea to prune out some of the shade canopies to allow a more diverse understory planting. Non native trees and bushes sometimes shade native plants and eventually the native plants die.

Toad Lilies finish their blooming about now but their black seed heads are beautiful and add texture to the garden. They are one of the few lilies where it's best to leave seed heads because they will gently self seed. I've never found them to be invasive and they are easy to pull if they pop up in inappropriate spots.

Honeysuckle bushes bloom until frost and entice hummingbirds. They may be planted in full sun to partial shade. Rose of Sharon bushes are blooming right now. Other hydrangea still have large flower heads gently turning colors. Both do well in partial shade.
The mums you see at nurseries and big box stores right now should be considered an annual. Southern grown, they will not survive our winter. Perennial mums need to be planted in the spring to allow time for proper root growth. Since they are typically rated for Zone 5, they have a better survival rate if they are planted in a protected spot.

Buy annual mums before their flower buds have opened if you want flowers through the fall months. I know - it's tempting to buy a fully blooming plant right now and that's fine if you wish the entire show right now. These annual mums may be planted or potted for shade as well as sun.

Fall is a time to sit and ponder how beautiful your gardens have been all summer. It's also a good time to take note of what might look good in that shade area next fall.