When I redid my front yard, I included a garbage enclosure. That means I now have a nice shade spot of concrete to "garden" in. My plan is to plant a few beautiful ceramics pots with natives. I'll get blue pots to create a "theme", and the next step will be getting container mix and the plants.
And again it's a question of Location, Location, and Location. The area gets full shade, from the house and the neighbor's 30 feet pittosporum hedge except for about an hour around noon, when it might get sun (or not). So, we have bright shade (nothing above the area) but not part-shade.
The ever-changing, sometimes challenging, but always inspiring site of Las Pilitas nursery has a page about shade with the oh-so-true comment "Many species that like full sun will grow in shade but may not flower much". Actually, I'd make that "Many species that supposedly do well in shade do not flower in shade". Such as Sisyrinchium bellum (blue-eyed grass) and Styrax officinalis californica (California snow-drop bush).
Their page about full shade has some suggestions, which include several Heuchera (coral bells), Iris, Lepechinia fragans (pitcher sage), Mahonia, ferns, and currents. They also list Yerba Buena, which would be pretty cascading over the edge of some pots, and a few other plants. They include Salvia spathacea, which I just transplanted from a shady area because it never bloomed, and Viola pedenculata. Well, I moved a few years ago and one of the reasons were some native violets that reseeded like crazy, were stunning for 3 weeks in spring, and were ugly, dry, and indestructable the rest of the year...
Still, not bad. A pitcher sage, some Heuchara, maybe a Mahonia, and a few ferns. The next step will be looking these up in my native gardening books and get more data. Of course, I'll also take suggestions...
And again it's a question of Location, Location, and Location. The area gets full shade, from the house and the neighbor's 30 feet pittosporum hedge except for about an hour around noon, when it might get sun (or not). So, we have bright shade (nothing above the area) but not part-shade.
The ever-changing, sometimes challenging, but always inspiring site of Las Pilitas nursery has a page about shade with the oh-so-true comment "Many species that like full sun will grow in shade but may not flower much". Actually, I'd make that "Many species that supposedly do well in shade do not flower in shade". Such as Sisyrinchium bellum (blue-eyed grass) and Styrax officinalis californica (California snow-drop bush).
Their page about full shade has some suggestions, which include several Heuchera (coral bells), Iris, Lepechinia fragans (pitcher sage), Mahonia, ferns, and currents. They also list Yerba Buena, which would be pretty cascading over the edge of some pots, and a few other plants. They include Salvia spathacea, which I just transplanted from a shady area because it never bloomed, and Viola pedenculata. Well, I moved a few years ago and one of the reasons were some native violets that reseeded like crazy, were stunning for 3 weeks in spring, and were ugly, dry, and indestructable the rest of the year...
Still, not bad. A pitcher sage, some Heuchara, maybe a Mahonia, and a few ferns. The next step will be looking these up in my native gardening books and get more data. Of course, I'll also take suggestions...
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