Northern Shade Gardening

Great foliage is important in a shade garden. Many plants that thrive in the shade tend to have no flowers or short blooming times or sparse flowering because of the low light. The flowers may come and go, but good foliage is visible for the season. The feathery plumes of the astilbes look great while they are flowering, but their lacy foliage looks great for even longer (this is probably truer in a northern climate).

Plants with leaves of different textures, habits and colours provide interest. If you are craving more colour, many of the newer Heuchera (coral bells) combine a rainbow of leaf colour. I’m partial to using a low key combination of different green shades, combined with silvers such as the perennial Brunnera macropylla ‘Jack Frost’ (Siberian bugloss). This picture from last summer also shows the Adiantum pedatum (Northern maidenhair fern) to the left, Convallaria majalis (lily of the valley) behind and Matteuccia struthiopteris (ostrich fern ) in the back corners. I like the feathery texture of the maidenhair fern next to the heart shaped silver veined leaves and the broad lily of the valley leaves with the vase shaped ostrich fern. These plants all do well under the shade of a willow tree with some dappled light.

Alternating perennials that are vase shaped, rounded, tall or sprawling adds excitement to the shade garden. Repeating these combinations around the garden ties it together. If you are looking for more foliage ideas, here is another post I wrote which has many foliage pictures.

What are your favourite perennial foliage combinations? When you go to buy a plant, which is more important to you, the leaves, the flowers, the plant form, the scent, or is it something less concrete like past memories you associate with the plant?

The earliest spring bulbs bring some of the greatest excitement in the northern garden, entirely out of proportion to their dainty size. Their exquisite blooms are eagerly awaited, not only for their beauty, but as a sign that the garden is starting its next cycle.

Despite the fresh spring snow, the Puschkinia libanotica ‘Alba’ (white striped squills) are standing firm. They have temporarily halted opening their buds, since it’s been snowing for over 24 hours. These bulbs are planted in a garden bed on the northern side of my house with many other spring bulbs. I’ve grown the blue striped squills before, but this white variety was newly planted last fall. They are the first of the small bulbs to bloom this spring. I’m not sure if they naturally bloom earlier than the blue variety, or if they have an advantage, being 2 feet closer to the warm house foundation. These bulbs are planted next to the front porch, where it’s easy to see and appreciate them. In a larger garden, or farther from the house, it is too easy for them to disappear from view unless they are planted in large patches. This is a hardy little bulb for a cold climate.

You can see a better picture of how Puschkinia libanotica ‘alba’ looks when its blooms actually open in this later post.

There are many perennial books that give good information, but not necessarily for your growing zone. When it comes to planning for northern gardening, it is frustrating to skim through detailed lists of perennials that won’t grow in our colder zones. Here are three books about hardy perennials that are useful for anyone gardening in a cold climate. The plants and tips are all applicable for a short gardening season and sub zero temperatures.

The first book is called Lois Hole’s Perennial Favorites, by Lois Hole. The book has good general information about growing perennials, including useful lists of plants for different situations such as shade gardens, rock gardens, wet areas or dry spots. Practical tips for perennial care such as dead heading plants and dividing them are clearly explained with pictures. However the bulk of the book is given to detailed information about specific perennials for northern gardens. Each plant gets 2 to 4 pages of description with many coloured photos. The facts are well organized and easy to access for quick reference. There are tips on plant culture and recommended varieties. One extremely useful section is a 2 page chart showing the relative blooming times of 100 perennials through the seasons, with individual bars showing the length of blooming time. This chart is very helpful for gardeners aiming to have different perennials in bloom at different times. In the short growing season of a cold climate, you want to make your garden last as long as possible, with early spring flwoers and late season colour. You can also use it to coordinate the blooming times in a particular bed.  If you are looking for information about reliable, hardy perennials, this is an excellent reference.

The next recommendation for northern gardens is called Perennials for Alberta, by Donna Dawson and Laura Peters. Although it’s given a regional name, it is an excellent reference for anyone dealing with a northern garden. The structure of the book is very similar to the previous book. The first section contains general perennial care information. There is a good discussion of the different ways perennials can be propagated, with lists of perennials that are best for each method. The bulk of the book is devoted to 2 page descriptions of each perennial, accompanied by a number of photos of each plant. there are general growing tips and recommendations for varieties help you choose the best plants and keep them thriving. The way the book is organized makes it easy to scan through, making lists of appropriate plants before a trip to the garden centre, or looking up the best way to care for an impulse purchase after you get home. This gardening book might be named for a particular province in Canada, but the information would be useful for any gardener with cold winters.

Best Garden Plants, by Donna Dawson and Laura Peters includes not only perennials, but also trees and shrubs, roses, bulbs, vines and grasses. It covers a fewer number of species of each type, so it only discusses the more common plants. They concentrate on the most hardy and reliable examples in each category. This would be particularly useful for anyone who is new to gardening, or new to gardening in a cold climate. Each plant has a one page description and coloured photos. This is a smaller, general reference, an introductory guide for gardening in a cold climate.

All three of these gardening books will help you choose plants that have a better chance of survival in a northern garden.

You can see the plants that grow well in my zone 3 shady garden on the My Garden Plants page.