Our yard has a lot of shade. We are lucky to have a lot of trees, which gives us a sense of privacy even though we don’t live on a secluded estate. There are three areas we have flowers, and all three have more shade than sun. I’m not used to this – up to now I’ve been gathering information about plants for hot, dry areas, plants that can handle life without a lot of babying from me. But I’m building up my shade repertoire and finding a whole new family of flowers.
Impatiens are a group of plants that work in the shade without any babying. Before you roll your eyes and click over to a site with sunflowers and prairie blazing star, you must know that Impatiens are not all the flat, uninteresting flowers you might be picturing. Impatiens come in a variety of colors and their shapes and shadings widely vary.
Also, don’t be a dork like me and go through life thinking they are called “impatients” because when you find out your mistake, you’ll feel a little silly.
These colorful flowers will bloom all season, aren’t picky about soil conditions, and as long as you keep them out of direct burning afternoon sun, they’ll remain agreeable. They are not hardy here in Minnesota, but they make a fantastic annual. Here are some of the other ones I picked up this year:
(Just a side note if you are interested, I took these photos with Instagram. If you use it too, I’d love to connect there. On Instagram I go by: writermama1999.)
I’d love to hear any other shade loving plants you’ve found. I have a few more to share but they aren’t blooming yet, due to our cool spring and delayed summer. I hope to feature them in the future. Do you have favorite flowers you are drawn to year after year?
Beautiful!! I have a couple foxgloves blooming now in the shade of an ornamental tree, and I think they are very pretty. I finally planted lily-of-ths-valley in a spot with afternoon shade, and I love that they are so hardy. They bloomed a few weeks ago, though, but this is a crazy cool and wet spring so nothing is blooming at its normal time.
I’ve wanted to plant foxgloves! They are so pretty. Have they performed for you in the shade? Do they need staking?
I love them, and even though they are biennial they apparently reseed themselves because I have them in the same spot and blooming every year. I am not a great gardener, and they perform just fine with very little attention from me. The variety I have doesn’t need to be staked. I’ll post a picture. Good luck!
Sharon
Thank you for sharing, we have had alot of rain in the past week and it has opened up 100’s of blooms!! I enjoy going out early in the mornings and looking at all of them.
There is something wonderful about getting your hands in the dirt, isn’t there? You are going to have a color explosion if you get some heat after all your rain. Exciting!