Sun and Shade Gardening
PLANNING YOUR GARDEN
Every successful plan must be grounded in reality. Before starting a garden, take time to analyze your growing conditions: sun, shade, soil type, climate, and moisture. No plant, no matter how expensive, will look good if it is suffering. Growing conditions can be altered but only to a certain extent. The ideal plan is a balance between the plants you want and those the conditions can support.
Sunlight plays an essential role in your garden. Sunshine powers the process of photosynthesis, which allows plants to make their own food using air and water. As they grow, plants provide food for grazing animals, who in turn provide sustenance for higher levels of the food chain. Sun provides the start for the whole food pyramid, so it's vital to give it the respect it deserves in the garden. But don’t despair if your garden isn’t full sun all day, shady gardens need different kinds of plants, but these gardens can still be successful.
SUN & SHADE CONDITIONS
Most sources agree on the following:
Full sun is six or more hours of direct sunlight per day. This doesn't need to be continuous, for example there could be four hours in the morning, shade midday, and three or four hours of sun in the afternoon. It must be direct, full sun.
Partial sun is between four and six hours of sun a day.
Partial shade is two to four hours of sun per day.
Shade, in gardening terms, means less than two hours of sunlight a day.
You may come across the terms light shade, moderate shade, and heavy shade:
Light shade sites receive partially filtered sun, such as that found under open canopied trees like honeylocust and birch, where there is an ever-moving pattern of sun and shade. You may see light shade referred to as dappled shade or intermittent shade.
Moderate shade occurs with mostly reflected light, such as at the floor of a hardwood forest.
Heavy or dense shade is a site with no direct sunlight, such as at the base of a north-facing wall or below dense evergreen trees. It is important to note that all plants need some light to survive.
SUN MAPPING YOUR GARDEN
First, you need to know the sun's path over your property. To do this you can use a compass. The sun will rise from the East and set to the West. Once you know the sun's general path over your site, look for East-to-West areas that are sunny and shaded at various times of the day.
As a general rule…
South-facing gardens get the most sun exposure. From sunrise to sunset, the garden is lit up (as long as it isn't shaded by trees). ...
North-facing gardens get the least amount of sun exposure. If they're close to your home, they might be entirely shaded all day.
You can use an APP to plan your yard’s sun pattern…
SunOnTrack app ($6.99). Plan the sun’s position, path and shadows at different times of day and year, anywhere.
During the summer you can draw a sun map of your garden, recording every house during the day where the sun and the shade is.