This Forum will close on Wednesday 27 March, 2024. Please refer to the announcement on the Discussions page for further detail.
West facing border shaded by trees in Autumn/Winter
Foxwillow
Posts: 50
We have been preparing a new west facing border. Since I started planting in our garden in Spring, this border has been in sun from mid morning onwards but, over the last couple of weeks, I've realised that the sun has dropped behind the trees at the bottom of the garden and it's barely receiving any direct sunlight. As a result, I'm hesitating about the planting design.
The trees casting shade are a mix of conifers and a big sycamore. The conifers have grown and the sycamore currently has most of its leaves - so in Springtime, I was seeing the border without the sycamore leaves blocking light for most of the afternoon.
This was going to be a border planted with lots of sun-loving perennials (agapanthus, delphinium, lupin, echinacea, rudbeckia etc) plus a few shrubs and an Acer Griseum, but clearly I'm going to go through this period every year where they will be in shade all day until all the leaves fall.
Since it's nearing the end of the season, would this lack of sunlight be an issue that would make you reassess the plants to use?
The trees casting shade are a mix of conifers and a big sycamore. The conifers have grown and the sycamore currently has most of its leaves - so in Springtime, I was seeing the border without the sycamore leaves blocking light for most of the afternoon.
This was going to be a border planted with lots of sun-loving perennials (agapanthus, delphinium, lupin, echinacea, rudbeckia etc) plus a few shrubs and an Acer Griseum, but clearly I'm going to go through this period every year where they will be in shade all day until all the leaves fall.
Since it's nearing the end of the season, would this lack of sunlight be an issue that would make you reassess the plants to use?
0
Posts
The Acer will possibly be fine unless it's bone dry, and/or windy and exposed.
Most of the other plants will tend to lean towards the light, so will need a lot of support, but if they have around five or six hours of decent light, they could be fine.
It also depends on how far away all the trees are.
If you have some photos, that will help too
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Shrubs that I have waiting to go in are a Taxus Baccata Standishii, Escallonia, Romneya Coulteri, Pittosporum, Viburnum Plicatum Mariesii, and Sambucus Nigra. A couple of these will have to go to the northerly end of the border. Our neighbours have a mature Acer Griseum which is growing in probably a more shaded position so I don't feel too worried about planting it.
I don't have any photos of that area just now but the border starts about 3m from a conifer that's currently 7m tall (but expected to be cut back to 4m over the winter) and is 11m in length. It's neutral clay soil that is being improved with compost and grit before planting.
Any organic matter is the best solution for clay.
Escallonias generally prefer sun and free draining soil , so that may struggle. Not all Pittosporums are reliably hardy either, so take care in choosing, and pick according to your location.
I'm doubtful that the Romneya would be very happy there as they need a lot of sun and freer draining soil. They aren't fully hardy either, so your location will dictate whether that does well.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Some of this bit of the garden has been worked before (many years ago it was a market garden) as I'm not hitting the solid clay I've got in other beds as soon as I start digging, but I might create some raised sand/gravel/soil areas to give the sun lovers a bit more of a fighting chance and cross my fingers that they like it. I saw a garden on clay recently which had a raised bed made of builders' sand and it was doing very well.