Anatomy of a Dry-Shade Planting

Breaking down the planting plan

A. Understory trees and shrubs provide screening without blocking light

The adorable , lite unripe Japanese maples underneath a towering Douglas fir provide filtered screening to the house without obscuring it or blocking igniter into the upper windows . An unusual Kiwi Gem ™ shrub panax provides a lush , magniloquent , evergreen ingredient . This shade plant resent stiff malarky or frost . The improbable canopy of large trees gives it the protection that it require to flourish . Together the Kiwi Gem ™ shrub panax and a ‘ Purple Gem ’ rhododendron block a utility expanse with a large , unsightly propane army tank .

B. Blended hardscaping and spilling fillers soften the concrete entryway

Concrete in an entryway can be very coarse and unnatural . Using ledgestone in color similar to that of the concrete help blend it into the garden . ‘ Lemon Daddy ’ hydrangea springs up behind three - leaved stonecrop planted next to the ledgestone . A combining of genus Epimedium and more three - leaved stonecrop planted in the bed opposite add to the softening event . These plants also hold the grime in place so it does n’t talk into the footpath during wind or rainstorm .

C. Bright, contrasting colors delineate the bed from the driveway

A belt of ‘ Aureola ’ Nipponese forest grass , three - leaved stonecrop , and epimedium defines the boundary of the driveway . These plant offer a bright spot of colour in which to sit a coil red - and - yellow carving . A large katsura tree diagram towers above the scene . The interplay of descent color between the katsura and the ‘ Aureola ’ Japanese forest dope is amazing !

Key players

1 . Three - leaved stonecrop(Sedum ternatum , Zones 4–8 )

2 . Japanese maples(Acer palmatumand cvs . , Zones 5–8 )

3 . Kiwi Gem ™ bush panax(Pseudopanax laetus , Zones 7–9 )

4 . ‘ Purple Gem ’ rhododendron(Rhododendron‘Purple Gem ’ , Zones 4–8 )

5 . Katsura(Cercidiphyllum japonicum , Zones 4–8 )

6 . Epimedium(Epimediumcv . , Zones 3–8 )

7 . ‘ Aureola ’ Nipponese forest grass(Hakonechloa macra‘Aureola ’ , Zones 5–9 )

8 . Douglas fir(Pseudotsuga menziesii , Zones 4–7 )

9 . ‘ Lemon Daddy ’ hydrangea(Hydrangea‘Lemon Daddy ’ , Zones 6–9 )

Susan Calhoun is the possessor of Plantswoman Design in Bainbridge Island , Washington .

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