Shady business

Shaded areas can be as beautiful and rewarding as any part of your garden, but they do come with unique complications, both permanent and seasonal, particularly if the rest of your garden basks in sunshine all year round.

In his new book Gardening in the Shade in South Africa (available in bookstores from end-January 2021), landscaping consultant Allan Haschick writes that gardeners often complain that shady spots are not colourful enough, that grass grows poorly or that the choice of plants is limited, or they find a dozen other reasons for their shaded garden not performing well. But it doesn’t have to be this way.

Once you have an understanding of the elements that make up a shaded garden, you’ll be able to adapt them to accommodate the particular circumstances of your own garden, and it won’t be long before that “difficult” shady spot becomes a spectacular bed of foliage or flowering plants.

Of course, every gardener’s shade “problem” is unique, and various parts of a garden can have different types of shade. Whether it is caused by large or overhanging trees, tall buildings or just being on the “wrong side” of the street, finding the best plants for a shady area can be challenging. Plants suited to shade are not necessarily tropical, although many tropical plants thrive in shade. Certain delicate leafy plants would scorch and burn in hot sun; some plants like shady conditions but not damp soil; others grow happily in boggy soil that receives minimum sunlight.

Different types of shade

First, you need to understand how shade (really just the absence of sunlight) affects plants.