You have two issues if you want to grow in shaded locations with dry soil. However, some plants can survive without water or sunlight.
We enlisted the help of our gardening specialists, who came up with the following ideas:
- Lenten rose
- Foxglove
- Lady’s Mantle
- Fatsia Japonica
- Snowdrops
Read our article to know more about them.
Ryan Smith from Ant & Garden Pest Control
Lenten rose
Contrary to their name, Lenten roses are not a type of rose, although the buds resemble rosebuds in the wild.
These perennial plants bloom around late winter or early spring and boast white, purple, or rose flowers.
When starting to grow Lenten roses, plant them in moist, well-drained soil. Once established, they can thrive well in dry areas.
They prefer partial or complete shade, although they can tolerate a bit of full sun.
Foxglove
Boasting tube-shaped flowers in white, pink, yellow, purple, and lavender foxgloves can be a great addition to the dry and shady parts of your garden.
This eye-catching flower loves light shade, but it can also tolerate full sun in cooler environments.
James Jennings from Home Garden HQ
Lady’s Mantle
The only plant that will never be missing in my dry and shady garden is the Lady’s Mantle.
It’s a very nice-looking evergreen plant that will delight your garden during summer with its foam of green flowers.
You may hear many gardeners complaining about it, but they can never convince me to ignore growing it in my garden.
Who on earth could hate a plant that can thrive despite everything? Yes, it’s just an ordinary plant and can seed freely, but no one can argue that it’s a fighter and survivor.
Lady’s Mantle is very easy to grow, and there’s not much involved in taking care of it. It grows best in the shade, especially in warmer regions. You just need to give it plenty of room to grow.
When planting it, it’s ideal for adding a bit of fertilizer on the bottom of the planting hole, and they’re good to go.
The bottom line, you’ll never be troubled taking care of Lady’s Mantle as it’ll never require you to give it special attention.
You’ll just need to do deadheading of its flowers regularly if you don’t want to spread them throughout your garden.
If you’re just a beginner and every plant you’ve tried failed to grow, try Lady’s Mantle, and you’ll certainly save yourself from quitting.
Leslie Vincent from Atkins
Fatsia Japonica
The Fatsia Japonica is a stunning plant with theatrical features. The fatsia is evergreen and can take a beating, making it ideal for this environment, be patient, though, as it does take some time to grow.
Make sure to water the plant often to keep the soil nice and moist as much as possible. If you leave this plant out of the shade, it will begin to falter as excessive sunlight, and blustery winds can damage the leaves.
You’ll also have to remember to prune the plant annually to maintain a vigorous growth habit. This will encourage the emergence of healthy, glossy leaves.
If you’d like, you can cut the entire plant to ground level in late winter, just before the new growth begins. Alternatively, you can remove about a third of the oldest stem every year for three years.
Snowdrops
Another stunning addition to a garden in a shady area would be Snowdrops or Galanthus. These do particularly well when nestled below the canopy of a deciduous tree.
It’s best to plant these bulbs sometime in the early autumn or if you’re planting freshly lifted plants, aim for late spring just when they’ve stopped flowering, but the leaves are still green.
Again, patience is vital as the snowdrops take a year or two to become established, but they also do not need that much tending to and are, in fact, better off left alone.
Allow the foliage to wither and die rather than cutting it naturally.
Conclusion
Start by using these plants as a foundation for your shadow garden, and you should have no trouble filling the bed. When you’ve mastered these plants, you’ll be able to branch out and try new types.
Good luck and see you in our next article!
