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| I'm a relatively new gardener, and I just ripped out a bunch of old, cracked concrete beside my garage. I filled in the old place with a mixture of sand and dirt that I got from another part of the yard. I know it's not a great medium, but it's what I had on hand. Because the area is right next to the house, it gets 4 hours of straight on sunlight a day and then moves into total shade. I'd like to plant the area with something reasonably attractive that can grow in poor soil, has flexible light requirements, and preferably will improve the soil. It would be nice if it were a relatively aggressive grower, too. I realize it's a big ask, which is why I'm asking the experts instead of just trying a whole bunch of different plants. I realize there won't be many plants that meet these specs, especially in zone 5, but there only needs to be one. Thoughts? Is there any hope for this sad, lightless wasteland? |
Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by ken_adrian z5 (My Page) on Mon, Sep 2, 13 at 19:15
| i have no clue why you think that a mixture of sand and dirt is somehow deficient???? you know.. 99% of us.. garden.. very successfully in such.. and none of us find it lacking in anything ... i simply have no clue.. why you have made the presumptions you have.. and limited yourself as such ... ANYTHING will grow in this soil.. with a little water from you ... what do you want there.. your only reasonable variable.. is that 4 hours of sun .... is on the low side of full sun .... so you would not want any of the big foo foo flowers.. like roses ... otherwise .. the sky is the limit ... you seem to think ..... that unless you spend a hundred bucks on allegedly 'good' soil.. that somehow mother earth isnt good enough ... i suspect .. you are wrong.... ken |
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| Hosta? |
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- Posted by susanzone5 z5NY (My Page) on Mon, Sep 2, 13 at 20:31
| This is what grows well in poor soil and mostly shade with a few hours or less of sun on my property: Hosta, bleeding heart, rudbeckia, columbine, daylilies, echinacea, corydalis, shasta daisies, ferns, pjm rododendron, foxgloves. |
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| I second geranium macrorrhizum. Go to Lazy S website for descriptions of several. There's also a website Geranacaea (I know I butchered the spelling) in CA that has many listed.She sells very healthy plants, all geraniums. Of course shipping is very expensive, but the per plant cost doesn't come to much more than than mail order from anywhere else. |
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- Posted by gardenweed_z6a N CT (My Page) on Tue, Sep 3, 13 at 0:08
| I'll ditto pretty much what Ken said--just about anything will grow if you plant/tend it properly. If it's a potted plant, be sure to "tease" out the roots before sticking it in a planting hole. Mother Nature has kept the planet--at least most parts of it--green for millions of years which tells me she's been doing something right. All we need do is follow her example. Growing in my Z6 part-sun garden beds are hosta, bleeding heart, rudbeckia, columbine, daylilies, Echinacea, Hellebore/Lenten rose, caryopteris, St. John's wort, toad lily, hydrangea, ferns, butterfly bush, Montauk daisy, columbine, Solomon's seal, pulmonaria/lungwort, stokesia, turtlehead, carnation, Japanese sedge, just to name a few. Is there any hope for this sad, lightless wasteland? Why wouldn't there be? Buying plants isn't the only way to have them--they can be grown from seed for pennies rather than purchased from expensive nurseries. Check out the Winter Sowing forum or wintersown.org to learn how to grow as many perennial plants as you want from seed--you can trade for the seed right here on the Seed Exchange forum. And yes, that's where I got most of my own seeds. Want a testimonial? I filled ALL my perennial beds with winter sown perennials in 3 years' time via winter sowing. Best of luck to you & feel free to ask more questions. |
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- Posted by princessgrace79 8 (My Page) on Tue, Sep 3, 13 at 0:24
| Four hours is actually not that bad! I have areas with an hour or two and yet seem to be getting things to grow. Do you want a single spreading groundcover or something more ornamental? |
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| Thanks for all the great suggestions! I'm guessing that the soil is relatively poor because it's construction sand and rocky, clay dirt that was beneath some flagstones we just removed. We excavated the base (sand on top, dirt beneath) to put in a better patio and moved the dirt we pulled out into into the spot on the side of the house. I'd love to be wrong about the soil quality, however. I'm excited to try so many beautiful suggestions. Thank you! |
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| @GardenWeed: "Mother Nature has kept the planet--at least most parts of it--green for millions of years which tells me she's been doing something right. All we need do is follow her example." Yes! Those were my thoughts exactly. I thought, "Instead of trying to fight these conditions, I need to find out what will grow here naturally. I'm going to ask the experts." I haven't tested our soil, but the extension center told me that the soil in our area tends to run a bit alkaline. Does that affect how well any of the gorgeous plants listed above will do? Irises really thrive in our soil, but from what I understand, they need more than four hours of sun a day to do so. Plus, I'm kind of irised out. I thought I'd have to settle for a reasonably attractive looking ground cover, but if I could pull off a beautiful ornamental arrangement, I'd be in absolute paradise. |
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| Rouge21: "Geranium macrorrhizum Here is a link that might be useful: very hardy geranium" That looks beautiful! Definitely a keeper. Thank you! |
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| Rouge21: "Geranium macrorrhizum Here is a link that might be useful: very hardy geranium" That looks beautiful! Definitely a keeper. Thank you! |
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| epimediums - the lifesaver for dry shade...and an addictive and thrilling genus as well. |
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| I would like to add to the chorus in support of epimedium, geranium, ferns and hellebores, and add on Heuchera villosa 'Autumn Bride'. This plant is large and nothing like the hybrid heucheras that are so popular now. Large, lush, lime green foliage and lovely spikes of white flowers starting in September. Truly an old-fashioned charmer! |
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| Thank you! I'm so excited to mix and match some of these things for a beautiful area! I've googled images of them, and they all look beautiful! I noticed that the hellebore is apparently poisonous. Is my cat likely to eat these or do they have the sense to stay away from them? |
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| My two cats have never touched any of my hellebores. It's a great plant that looks good almost 365 days a year, including now...even when so much looks tired. |
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| Thanks, Ruth_mi! I'm excited to try them out. They're just gorgeous! |
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