SHADE LOVING PLANTS
Like interior design I have always loved gardening. It is one of the best recipes for reducing stress while bringing a brilliance of color to your yard. Landscapes are like human DNA…every yard is different and has the personality of each landscaper carefully placed inside. One of the most beautiful things about landscaping is that people can select what strikes them with endless options, beauty is always in the eye of the beholder. In fact, there are so many options out there that it can become quite overwhelming. Here I want to point out some of the plants that I have personal experience with and hopefully introduce someone to a plant they might not know existed.
Perennials = plants grow back year after year, only needs to be planted once
Annuals = die in the winter time and need to be re-planted the following year
Deciduous = sheds it’s leaves in the winter while growing back the following spring
-
Ti Plant
Technical Name : Cordyline fruticosa
Light Requirements : Partial shade
Blooms : Spring
Height Spread : 10 feet tall, 3 - 4 feet wide
USDA Hardiness : Zones 10 - 12
Plant Type : Evergreen
Native to eastern Asia, Australia, and the Pacific Islands, the folklore of the ti plant is as lush as its evergreen foliage. This "good luck plant" was believed by early Polynesians to have mystical powers. Legend has it that the more stalks on your ti plant, the greater fortune you will have in matters of the heart, mind, and more. Beloved for its colorful, fast-growing, and lasting foliage, the ti plant comes in dark glossy green, deep glossy red, other shades of green, red, maroon, rose, pink, orange, yellow, and white. Foliage comes in an array of vibrant colors though most commonly in plum purple and hot magenta.
-
Japanese Maple Tree
Technical Name : Acer palmatum
Light Requirements : Filtered sun, partial shade
Blooms : Spring
Height Spread : 15 - 25 feet tall, 15 - 25 feet wide
USDA Hardiness : Zones 5 - 9
Plant Type : Tree
Japanese maple trees can provide a striking focal point, be the perfect plant to set off a large container, or grow into an impressive bonsai specimen. There are hundreds of Japanese maple varieties that come in various sizes with a large assortment of leaf shapes and colors that range from shades of green to orange, red, purple, and variegated.
-
Persian Shield
Technical Name : Strobilanthes dyerianus
Light Requirements : Filtered sun, partial shade
Blooms : Fall, Winter
Height : 3 - 4 feet tall, 2 - 3 feet wide
USDA Hardiness : Zones 8 - 11
Plant Type : Perennial, annual
It is easy to see how Strobilanthes was dubbed "Persian shield." The leaves have the appearance of little pointed armor shields ready for battle, with a flashy, purplish iridescence and a silvery metallic sheen. Although this plant's name is "Persian," it is actually native to Myanmar (formerly Burma), not Persia. In hot climates, it is an evergreen subshrub. In cooler climates, it is grown as an annual plant or herbaceous perennial, and is also popular as a houseplant because it tends to bloom during winter. However, the vibrant purple color often fades with age, and both outdoor perennials and indoor potted plants are often discarded after a few years.
As an annual, Persian shield is usually planted from potted nursery starts in spring after the soil has fully warmed. It grows relatively fast in warm, humid conditions; a small potted nursery plant will become a bushy 2-foot plant within a few weeks.
-
Variegated Ginger
Technical Name : Alpinia zerumbet
Light Requirements : Filtered sun, partial sun
Blooms : Spring
Height : 4 - 7 feet tall, 4 feet wide
USDA Hardiness : Zones 9 - 10
Plant Type : Perennial
Leafy, arching stems create a lush, tropical effect with boldly striped yellow and green foliage. Large, drooping clusters of white and pink shell-like flowers are sweetly fragrant. Works well in containers and can be used as an indoor specimen. An herbaceous perennial.
-
Coleus
Technical Name : Plectranthus scutellarioides
Light Requirements : Partial shade to full shade
Blooms : Seasonal
Height : 6 - 36 inches tall, 6 - 36 inches wide
USDA Hardiness : Zones 10 - 11
Plant Type : Annual
Coleus, made popular as Victorian-era bedding plants, have made a huge comeback thanks to the all-season color the lovely foliage offers, whether it's planted in full sun or shade. Coleus plants are characterized by square stems and leaves situated directly opposite one another. Though it produces tiny blue to white flowers, they are insignificant and are often pinched off to conserve the plant's energy. The foliage can vary widely in shape, style, and color. Breeders regularly produce new introductions with even more unusual colors and patterns.
Planted outdoors in early spring, coleus quickly grows to full size in a single season. Large swaths of assorted coleus plantings that take on a quilt-like appearance can look luscious in a landscape or garden beds. Its vividly colored foliage also adds a decorative touch to window boxes, outdoor container gardens, and hanging baskets. Coleus is toxic to pets.
-
Elephant Ears
Technical Name : Colocasia, Alocasia, Xanthosoma spp.
Light Requirements : Full sun, partial shade
Blooms : Late Spring, early Fall
Height : 3 - 6 feet tall, 3 - 6 feet wide
USDA Hardiness : Zones 8 - 10
Plant Type : Tropical perennial
Elephant ears are tropical perennial plants grown for the appeal of their large leaves rather than their flowers. Elephant ear is the common name for several species in three plant genera—Colocasia, Alocasia, and Xanthosoma. The most common one is Colocasia esculenta, also known as taro. These fast-growing plants will achieve their full size within two months and are generally planted in the spring after all danger of frost has passed and soil temperatures have warmed to at least 70 degrees Fahrenheit. You can also plant them later in early summer.
Whatever the species, elephant ears are dramatic, exotic plants with huge heart-shaped leaves, used as accent plants or as a feature in tropical-themed water or bog gardens. Their leaves can reach 3 feet long and 2 feet wide in the tropics; in colder climates, they will remain smaller but still have impressive leaves. In warm zones (8 and above), the plant can be left in the ground as a perennial, while in colder zones, the plants are either treated as annuals, discarded at the end of the season, or dug up and stored indoors for planting the following spring. Colocasia esculenta plants are invasive in tropical areas. They are also toxic to animals and humans.