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Giving each plant the right amount of light, without burning it or starving it, determines how well that plant performs. Because plants ‘eat’ light, they must have enough to power photosynthesis and to accomplish all of their life processes.
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Many flowering perennials, like Iris, Lavender, and Cannas, want full sunlight for at least 6-8 hours each day.
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Give a plant too little light and it grows leggy and pale. The stems between its leaves s t r e t c h, reaching for the light. Flower production slows and it looks a bit ‘sickly.’ It grows more susceptible to pests and to disease, fungal infections and general rot.
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This Calla, grown in partial shade last summer, grows better in full sun. The elongated petioles of the leaves are reaching up for the light. It was also crowded after several years growing in the pot. I divided the tubers, after this photo, and had five separate plants to grow on in better light.
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But too much light can fry fragile leaves and delicate flowers; especially hot summer sun. Even ‘full sun’ plants appreciate some shade during summer afternoons in the southern United States. It is harder to keep plants hydrated in full sun and hot weather.
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White and light colored leaves often want more shade than dark green ones. Here, Caladium, fern and perennial Begonia grow in shade cast by a Dogwood tree.
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How do we navigate both the weather, and the needs of our many different plants?
The MOST important question to ask when acquiring a new plant is, ‘How much light does it need?‘
Most nursery grown plants and seeds now come with little informational tags which indicate: full sun, partial sun, partial shade or shade. That bit of information provides a start, but most of us need the experience of trial and error to master getting the light right!
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Though most Canna lilies prefer full sun, this variegated C. ‘Stuttgart’ wants partial shade and lots of moisture. The more sun it gets, the more moisture it wants. Notice the burned leaves? It probably wants more shade than this spot offers. The nursery sent a note of warning about its needs when I purchased it this spring.
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Like everything else about gardening, the light is ever changing from morning to evening and spring thorough winter. And of course, these conditions change in our garden as trees and shrubs grow, perennials expand, and of course when plants are lost. Good gardeners learn through observation, and remain flexible.
When trying a plant for the first time, especially an expensive one, I think it is wise to start it off in a pot. Why? Pots are portable. Unless you are absolutely sure you know where to plant something for it to get proper light, like planting Daffodil bulbs in the sun, starting off with a pot allows for easy experimentation.
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Our ‘bog garden’ got a little more sun last year than it does this year. The plants all started in pots, though I moved a few into the soil as the summer progressed. Colocasia will grow in sun or shade, but want more moisture in full sun.
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Although gardening books can be helpful guides to knowing how much light or shade a particular plant requires, the latitude and altitude of one’s garden determines the ferocity of the sun. Climate also plays an important part in knowing how much ‘full sun’ a plant needs and can endure. If most days are cloudy and rain falls frequently, less shade from buildings and trees will be required. But if it rarely rains and day after day passes hot and clear, anything but a cactus will likely need a little afternoon shade!
Providing more moisture can help a plant survive a spot that is a bit too sunny and hot for its liking.
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Foxtail ferns growing in an open area beside the path to Beverly Beach, OR. They grow in full sun in this cool, moist climate.
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A fern growing in ‘full sun’ in coastal Oregon might burn up in a day or two in my Virginia garden, if not given some afternoon shade.
That is one reason why many experienced gardeners give themselves at least a year to come to understand a new garden before starting renovations. It takes a full year of observation to understand how light moves through the garden during the course of a day and from month to month.
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Older varieties of Coleus prefer partial shade, but these newer hybrids can take several hours of full sun each day.
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Even a single year isn’t enough to understand the subtleties of microclimates and exposures relative to structures; the prevailing winds; where water flows during a rainstorm; and where heat lingers during the winter. That is why patient observation is a gardener’s best ally when placing plants.
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This first bloom on Canna ‘Stuttgart’ is an unusual color for a Canna. Still growing in a pot, I will look for a permanent spot with more shade since the leaves have scorched in this location. This variety enjoys moist soil.
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Here is an experiment for you: If there is a new plant you want to introduce to your garden, begin with several. Plant them in different spots in your garden, give each the best care you can, and observe how they grow. Within just a few weeks you may notice some doing better than others. Why?
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Echinacea grow well with a little afternoon shade in our garden. It is planted in several different beds with varying degrees of sun. The Calla has much better color here than it did last year in its pot. All of these sun-loving perennials will need to be moved as the Star Magnolia (right) grows into a tree over the next few years.
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I quickly noticed that two identical pots, one on either side of our front porch, grew differently. Why?
One side of the porch has more sunshine each day than the other, more shady side. I can trade out pots every few weeks to keep them even, or experiment to find plants indifferent to the subtle difference in light.
After learning about each plant’s needs and preferences, and understanding what resources each zone of a gardener can offer, it becomes clearer how to design successful plantings. It takes time; maybe years; to earn this knowledge. We all make mistakes along the way, and hopefully count them as part of our education.
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This tuberous Begonia grows in a pot 10 feet away from identical Begonias purchased the same day from the same nursery, and potted up with the same fertilizers. But the other plants grow in a little more shade, and have not yet bloomed. Although tuberous Begonias need partial shade, they still want plenty of filtered light or morning sun to bloom well. Moving the pot a little into more light might help the other Begonias bloom, too.
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And this is why observation and flexibility make the difference between great ‘green thumb’ gardeners and mediocre ones.
When we realize that a plant isn’t happy where it is growing, we must either move the plant, or somehow change the conditions. Knowing a plant’s needs and preferences up front helps us make educated guesses about how to grow it well. When it shows stress, we can give it more favorable conditions, or discard it.
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These Echinacea plants need a little bit more sun than they are getting. Their bed has grown shadier over the years. Though blooming, they look a bit ‘ratty,’ don’t you think? I should move them….. and plant something else which appreciates the shade…..
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Likewise, if we realize that we have very little sun in our garden, or very little shade; we choose only plants that can thrive in our conditions. Why watch a tomato plant languish in a shady, tree filled garden? Tomatoes like all the sun you can give them, and require 6-8 hours of full sun each day to produce good fruit. If you garden in a forest, as we do, it pays to make friends with the local farmers and frequent their farm stands!
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These white Monarda are performing well in partial sun. A friend gave me several clumps last year, and I spread them around in different parts of the garden to see where they would do well. These in partial sun, near mature Lilac shrubs, have done the best.
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Shade gardeners learn to take pleasure in ferns and Hostas, Azaleas, Caladiums and Begonias. Those with sunnier gardens have better experiences with most herbs and vegetables, flowers for cutting, conifers and fruit trees. Sometimes we have to adapt our expectations and desires to the growing conditions our present garden can provide!
We were startled, a few years ago, to lose several mature oak trees in a summer thunderstorm. In the blink of an eye, much of our shady garden was transformed to an open, sunny, mulch covered field. What to do?
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Bits of branch and bark form a foundation for the new raised bed which became our ‘stump garden’ after losing our oaks. Nearly full shade was transformed to ‘full sun’ in a moment, with the loss of three mature oak trees.
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Challenges grow into opportunities, don’t they? But the available light in a garden determines everything else about plant selection and vigor. Moving a plant just a foot or so one way or another may change the amount of sun it receives each day.
That is why it is crucial to ‘get the light right!’ when designing our garden, and protecting our investment in the plants we grow.
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Herbs hold the power to heal us. The ‘stump garden,’ two years later, planted with sun loving herbs and perennials.
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“Green Thumb” Tips: Many of you who visit Forest Garden are amazing gardeners with years of experience to share. Others are just getting started, and are looking for a few ‘tips and tricks’ to help you grow the garden of your dreams.
I believe the only difference between a “Green Thumb” and a “Brown Thumb” is a little bit of know-how and a lot of passion for our plants. If you feel inclined to share a little bit of what YOU KNOW from your years of gardening experience, please create a new post titled: “Green Thumb” Tip: (topic) and include a link back to this page. I will update this page with a clear link back to your post in a listing by topic, so others can find your post, and will include the link in all future “Green Thumb” Tip posts.
Let’s work together to build an online resource of helpful tips for all of those who are passionate about plants, and who would like to learn more about how to grow them well.
Many thanks to Peggy, of Oak Trees Studios, who posted her first tip: ‘Green Thumb’ Tip: Release Those Pot-Bound Roots! Please visit her post for beautiful instructions on how to prepare roots for re-potting.
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“The single greatest lesson the garden teaches
is that our relationship to the planet need not be zero-sum,
and that as long as the sun still shines
and people still can plan and plant, think and do,
we can, if we bother to try, find ways
to provide for ourselves
without diminishing the world. ”
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Michael Pollan
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Forest Garden 