IN THE SHADE

Shade is an inevitable part of gardening. Rather than thinking of dim corners as lifeless voids, however, embrace them and discover the plants that thrive on the dark side. If well planned, shady borders can be the most delightful areas of a garden, providing cool contrasts to sunlit plots.

Assess the area

First, determine the type of shade by observing that area of your garden at different times of the day and through the seasons, as it seldom remains constant. The area may be in:

• ‘light shade’, when it is open to the sky but with no direct sunlight;

• ‘semi-shade’, where it receives three to six hours of direct