Becoming windy with thunderstorms likely. High 68F. SSW winds shifting to NW at 25 to 35 mph. Chance of rain 80%. Winds could occasionally gust over 40 mph..

Partly cloudy. Windy. Low 32F. Winds N at 25 to 35 mph. Winds could occasionally gust over 40 mph.

Shade gardening presents a new world of possibilities such as purples and pinks of coleus.

Shade gardening presents a new world of possibilities such as purples and pinks of coleus.

Knowing the amount of sun or shade required by a plant is a key element in growing plants successfully. Even when the gardener narrows the selection of plants to those that preferred shade it is important to determine the degree of shade required. This also applies to those plants that may not actually prefer shade but will tolerate it.

Areas of shade in the garden beneath tree canopies, hedges or large shrubs receive the same sort of light as in a natural woodland and may be suited for plants that enjoy the same environment. By learning the special needs of shade-loving plants, gardeners can create a cool, attractive haven to enjoy on many hot summer days.

Plants use the energy from the sunlight to produce the food they need to grow. In this sense, all plants need some light to survive. Don’t get confused about light from direct sunlight and reflective or filtered light, because many plants can exist on only a relatively small amount of reflected light.

By itself, shade means only the absence of light. To help the gardener determine the best spot to position a shade-loving plant, a descriptive adjective should accompany the word shade. Most horticulture texts will use a definition of shade; however, they usually fall under four categories of shade-dappled, open, medium and dense.

Dappled shade is the intermittent shade produced by open shrubs or trees. It is characterized by moving of sunlight and shadows across the ground. This is the lightest type of shade, in which direct sun on any given area is minimal for any length of time. Dappled shade occurs in front of east-facing walls, where there is some direct sun early in the day. This type of shade provides the widest range of gardening possibilities because it is friendly to many plants.

Open shade is created on the north side of a building wall or fence where there is good reflected light but no direct sunlight. Fiberglass greenhouses under direct sun can also be considered open shade situations. The proximity to a south-facing wall that reflects light will greatly increase brightness in an open shade location.

An open shady location in which light is further diminished by an overhanging tree or structure characterizes medium shade. Often the different between open and medium shade is due to the amount of sky reflecting light into the shady area.

Dense shade is the deepest shade, found in narrow, north-facing side yards and directly under large-leafed trees. Tall walls and fences block all but a narrow strip of light. Here, plant selection is quite limited and selection should be done carefully.

Gardeners with shaded garden areas often feel that their selection of plants is so limited that only the boring sort of garden can be created. Although gardeners do have fewer plants choices for shade, the deeper the shade, the more limited the selection. Fortunately, the list of possibilities is great enough to create a stylish and interesting garden.

When considering color in a shade garden as compared to a sunny garden, bear in mind that fewer plants produce bright colors and colors appear duller in shade. Good shade gardeners will experiment and observe plants that are doing well in shady areas and used those plants more often.

The shade gardener will appreciate the colors, shapes and textures that foliage provides and use these plants as much as flowering plants. Shade gardening presents a new world of possibilities such as purples and pinks of coleus, the brightly banded yellows, greens and whites of hostas, blue-green needles of yews, the glossy green with red berries of hollies and the yellow with blue berries of Oregon grape mahonia.

There are many shrubs that can be included in shady locations such as aucubas, cleyera, fatsia, gardenias, hollies, hydrangeas, mahonia, false hollies and viburnums.

Jim Coe lives in Lawton and writes a weekly garden column for The Lawton Constitution.

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