USEFUL PLANTS FOR SHADY BORDER

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 714, 13 July 1929, Page 14

USEFUL PLANTS FOR SHADY BORDER

Shaded or partially shaded borders are often bare and uninteresting. There is no real reason why they should be, however, for there are many subjects that do well in such positions. There is one thing that is absolutely necessary for their wellbeing, however; the site must be properly prepared, being dug over deeply, manured and improved in accordance with ordinary procedure. Of course, if the bed is overhung with trees, an additional duty is to lop back overhanging branches and also any roots that would otherwise impoverish the soil. It is also desirable to plant things rather more thinly than usual, for they will be inclined to produce more foliage in the shade and there will be few flowers if the foliage is too dense. Some of the most suitable plants are: Anemone japonica. aquilegia, auricula, bamboo, campanula, dielytra, doronicum, fuchsia, funkia. helleborus, iris; many kinds of ltluro, pansy, phlox, platycodon, primrose, polyanthus, primula, ranunculus, rudbeckia, saxiefraga, solidago, spiraea, thalictrum, tradescantia, viola, violet and veronica. Poppy Iceland. Most of these names represent whole families of plants, from which tall or dwarf varieties can be chosen to suit particular needs. Under very trying circumstances, where scarcely a ray of sunlight can penetrate, many are quite happy in dense shade. Free use could also be made in such situations of the periwinkles (Vinca), London Pride saxifraga and the cerastium.