Plants for a shady front garden

Kathy535

Hello. We've just dug over and reseeded our north- west facing small front garden. It gets a bit of light but has the house at the south side, a 4ft fence in the west side and a 6ft beech hedge in the north side.

Although the grass is growing the borders look very bare, I've planter some pits and baskets with pansies but can anyone suggest some undemanding plants to make it look a bit more pleasant? It would be lovely if they were winter proof.

Thanks for your help..

I_have_spoken

http://www.crocus.co.uk/plants/_/vid.241/vid.4/vid.30/vid.11/

aggypanthus

I_have_spoken wrote: »

http://www.crocus.co.uk/plants/_/vid.241/vid.4/vid.30/vid.11/

none of these would be on my list.


try astilbes, hostas, but dont let them get too dry.
wegeliia ruby red, cranesbill geraniums.

REEN

Hellebores do well for me in a shady front garden. They flower early, last well and have handsome clumps of leaves for the rest of the year. Just cut off the old leaves when they get tattered. They are expensive to buy though.

tizerbelle

Foamflowers (tiarella) do well in the shade - pink skyrocket throws up loads for months on end. Its a semi-evergreen perennial

Heuchera's are also great at adding foliage interest - apparently the lime green ones do really well in the shade and then you can also get the heuchera / tiarella crosses - heucherellas!

And don't forget the geraniums - some lovely shade loving ones.

Take a look at www.plantsforshade.co.uk

Kathy535

Lovely, thanks all. I especially like the winter flowering ones you've suggested. I'm off browsing and ordering now!

Elsewhere

Bergenia grows anywhere, and has pretty flowers! I have it in full sun at my house, but it's doing just as well in my son's north-facing front garden.

http://www.plantsforshade.co.uk/acatalog/Bergenia.html

safestored4

We also have a shady North facing front garden but almost by accident it has over the years become one of the most attractive parts of the garden. It is mainly a Winter garden. We no longer have a lawn. The relatively small area is heavily planted with Hellebores as mentioned above, masses of Snowdrops which we split up every year, Ferns, a couple of Begonias and shrubs chosen for their structural shape rather than flowers. Wallflowers provide Spring colour - they are so easy and cheap to grow from seed. Self sown Teezels and Sunflowers see us over the Summer.

Kathy535

Elsewhere wrote: »

Bergenia grows anywhere, and has pretty flowers! I have it in full sun at my house, but it's doing just as well in my son's north-facing front garden.

http://www.plantsforshade.co.uk/acatalog/Bergenia.html

Ooh, that's pretty, thank you

RAS

Depending on what trees you have also consider primroses, bluebells and other woodland bulbs that are happy in north facing area/shade.

Brunbjorn

Why not have a taste for the 'exotic', and try irises?

These normally like full sun, but the early-flowering dwarf bulbous ones (like iris reticulata) flower in February and March (before the beech hedge probably comes into leaf)

I've got the 'Joyce' variety in my garden, and its lovely to see the blue flowers - just as the maple hedge is starting to wake up and produce leaves