Do you have a shady trouble spot in your yard? Don’t give up hope on these bare patches. Turn these trouble spots into thriving gardens by choosing shade-tolerant plants that are both colorful and easy to maintain.
How much shade?
Categorize your shady spots as light, partial, or dense shade. Partial shade receives some direct sun for a few hours of the day, while dense shade is shaded throughout the entire day.
To add just a little more light, try thinning a tree by pruning a select few branches, bearing in mind that this may need to be repeated every few years.
Soil
There are additional considerations that complicate shady spots beneath trees. The thick canopy of a tree not only blocks out light, but moisture as well, leaving the soil dry and compacted. If this is the case in your shady spot, spread compost over the area several inches deep. In a year or two, earthworms will move in and help loosen up the compacted subsoil. Wait until you have a loose, crumbly soil before you begin planting. If you don’t have the patience, English ivy (Hedera helix) will grow under such difficult conditions.
Design your shade garden
Once you’ve chosen your plants, arrange them from tallest to shortest, with the tallest in the back of the bed. One suggestion is a shade tolerant understory tree such as red or sugar maple or black elder, followed by shrubs like gray dogwood, and filled out with a groundcover of coral bells and hostas.
Hostas and coral bells are particularly well suited to shade gardens as they provide a punch of color to an area that might otherwise be monochromatic and dull.
Plants grown in shade generally are not as dense, have fewer flowers, and their fall colors may not be as vibrant as those grown in full sun. They may also require more supplemental water, but the reward for your efforts is turning a drab, barren patch in your yard into a vibrant and colorful garden bed.
Sources:
http://pubs.cas.psu.edu/FreePubs/pdfs/xj0028.pdf
All-New Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening: The Indispensable Resource for Every Gardner, Fern Marshall Bradley and Barbara W Ellis, Editors