Forum home› Talkback
This Forum will close on Wednesday 27 March, 2024. Please refer to the announcement on the Discussions page for further detail.

Difficult dry shade woodland planting

Cheryl DolleryCheryl Dollery Posts: 4
in Talkback
Hello, I have a difficult dry shade woodland area for planting that surrounds a seating area. Currently only hellebores and hydrangea has survived there. The honeysuckle grows like a weed but never flowers. The soil is neutral and light (not clay). Does anyone have advice on planting ideas or how I could improve the soil here. Also, the grass in this part of the garden also suffers (actually dies) could someone recommend a grass alternative that could live through bluebells which have neutralised? Any help would be greatly appreciated as Its the only desolate area in the garden and it's around the seating area.

Posts

  • punkdocpunkdoc Posts: 15,039

    I am not sure that I agree with all of your choices Verdun.

    I find that Astilbes need plenty of moisture, as do Aconitums.

    I also think that Asters tend to prefer a fair bit of sun, rather than dry shade.

    Some of your other choices would be good though.

    How can you lie there and think of England
    When you don't even know who's in the team

    S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
  • fidgetbonesfidgetbones Posts: 17,618

    Is it under conifers shade or deciduous?' Deciduous woodland shade will support lots of spring flowering perennials before the trees come into leaf. Foxgloves, cyclamen, hellebores, pulmonarias would all do well.

  • Cheryl DolleryCheryl Dollery Posts: 4
    It's conifers, pulmonarias grow like weeds along with forget me nots, which is fine but I'd like a bit more height.



    The hydrangea flowers very well, it's in probably 60% shade I'd say and in the summer I try to water most days when hot as the plants start to visibly wilt image. I've added top soil and I did add some manure a year ago, I guess it's just a constant thing I need to keep adding to.
  • Cheryl DolleryCheryl Dollery Posts: 4
    Also, oddly, I've added some anemones, they seem ok but as with all of them, are slow growing there. However, I've got loads of hardy geraniums so when I divided one I put a nice large plant there and it wasn't happy at all. Tiger lillies have also seemed to have done ok there, it's all an experiment, I just hate to loose plants.
  • Cheryl DolleryCheryl Dollery Posts: 4
    I guess my dry soil varies depending on the roots of the trees?? Id say the soil is loamy, a lot of leaves from deciduous trees fall there (thinking more there is a mix of large conifers which I'd say take a lot of moisture and deciduous trees too mix with holly). The spot where the hydrangea is probably gets some leaf fall which helps stop some of the moisture being evaporated, it probably also has the most sunny spot in the sun shady area.



    Thanks for all your suggestions, I'll wait a month or so then get back onto trying to make that area look nicer. The rest of the garden is beautiful but annoyingly the seated area looks a mess.
Sign In or Register to comment.