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Jennifertaylor26
| | Posted on Friday, March 07, 2008 - 06:53 pm EST : |   
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Hi everybody! thanks in advance for any help you can offer.
my goal is to have a garden that looks like this
but the problem i am coming across is that my garden is almost all in the shade and i live in southern california which is a 10 zone, so i'm having trouble finding pretty plants that bloom or are pretty and colorful that'll work in my rather warm climate in the shade(i.e. dead nettle isn't even sold anywhere near me)
does anyone have any hints on what plants i can get to make my garden pretty, lush and serine? thanks for your help!
i was going to post a pic of what my garden looks like right now but its just not working. thanks again!
Jennifertaylor26
- CA,
Zone "10"
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Kaspian
| | Posted on Saturday, March 08, 2008 - 01:06 pm EST : |
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Well, I live in practically a different universe -- the coast of Maine -- but one thing I can suggest is that you don't torture yourself by wishing you had a garden that just won't grow in your area. Instead, train your senses to perceive the beauty (and the unique possibilities) of the place where you actually live.
One way to do this is by poring over beautiful photographs in books and magazines devoted to gardens (and nature in general) in your part of the world. Another is to visit public gardens in your area. And a third way is to acquire plant and seed catalogs that offer stuff suited to subtropical gardening.
It took me a while to adjust to the Maine landscape and climate after growing up in the Southeast. I had to re-learn everything about gardening, starting with the most fundamental ways in which I see the land around me. But now that I've adjusted, it just feels perfectly natural, and it's hard to imagine gardening anywhere else.
I envy you for all the opportunities you've got to grow exotic stuff from all over the world.
Kaspian
- Maine,
Zone "5"
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Garden_spider
| | Posted on Saturday, March 08, 2008 - 06:11 pm EST : |
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I agree with Kaspian--look for plants that will survive in your zone 10, rather than yearning for a zone 7 garden.
I think what you may be yearning for is a lush, tropical garden. You still have a lot of choices . . . I know that Plants Delights, Las Pilitas, and Bluestone Perennials sell zone 9 and 10 plants. Plants Delights may be your best bet for lush tropicals, and they are highly rated as a good mail order supplier. Las Pilitas is located in California, and would be another good choice for you.
A lot of tropical plants are understory plants, meaning they will do well in the shade or in partial shade. What is causing your shade--can you create more sun by removing a tree, a fence, or a shed? Even limbing up an existing tree will help a lot.
Hope this helps!
Garden_spider
- Washington,
Zone "USDA z7"
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Charlenenj
 Supporting Member
My Weather
My Garden
| | Posted on Monday, March 10, 2008 - 09:09 pm EST : |
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I have ideas! I think everyone would look at that picture and have a different idea of what they are actually seeing. Maybe you like the different colors (including variegations), height of plants, texture (fine/dissected in some areas, round in others). If so, I wouldn't worry about copying the exact plants but consider others with similar features. And the way they are put together makes all the difference and is what is so appealing. (My fellow GB'ers can tell you how awful I am at placement though so I will just give you plant ideas below -- all are listed as going down to Zones 10-11 and can take full or partial shade, They are all perennials).
If you like the painted look of the nettle, then what about a Heuchera like this "Dolce Mocha Mint" that would enjoy the shade and goes down to Zone 11:
(same idea: Lungwort, "Gaelic Sunset")
...and to replicate the upright, bright yellow/golden foliage above the pic's nettle, how about a butterfly bush hardy to Zone 10 that has bright yellow foliage:
In an area that gets the most sun, a pretty variegated iris would be nice and when it's not in flower, will be spiky and colorful (Iris pallida 'Variegata'):
(same idea: a Yucca ("Color Guard"):
For that splash of hot red or pink, if you don't want annuals then how about some of the sages that go down to Zone 10, like "Raspberry Delight" or "Wild Things":
For a larger item (and one that is bright): a dwarf dogwood ("Arctic Sun"):
For the purple or dark leafed plants in the picture....the purple leafed heucheras are listed as only going down to Zone 9 (the heuchera I noted above I see listed as Zone 10). But I'm sure folks on here can give you ideas on purple leafed plants. Here's one - it's a tree but don't know how big it is. It's referred to as Mimosa, "Chocolate Summer":
A few weeks back I saw an incredible looking plant that was a dark, bright purple and it looked a bit like a yucca. I cut it out of a magazine but now I can't find it!!
Lots of my links are from the company Garden Crossings b/c boy do I heart them.
Charlenenj
- New Jersey,
Zone "6b"
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Jennifertaylor26
| | Posted on Tuesday, March 11, 2008 - 10:49 am EST : |
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Oh my gosh thank you all so much! Charlenenj you helped me IMMENSLEY! i will def. look into those soon. thanks so much!
Jennifertaylor26
- CA,
Zone "10"
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Lovinlife
Supporting Member
| | Posted on Tuesday, March 25, 2008 - 11:51 am EST : |
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I agree -- this one is always on my list of "must haves" for the garden. It is very, very fragrant also.
There are three plants in your Dream Garden photo that can be grown in shade: in the front of the border, Heuchera and Lamium, and the fern. Heuchera is the purple one, and the Lamium is in front at the far right side. The fern is in back of the front border and is a great plant for shade.
Lovinlife
- Utah,
Zone "5"
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Lovinlife
Supporting Member
| | Posted on Tuesday, March 25, 2008 - 12:10 pm EST : |
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Almost forgot: Bleeding Heart and Foxgloves are both beautiful shade plants.
Lovinlife
- Utah,
Zone "5"
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