Shady, Dry Flower Bed

Question: I have a flower bed below a tall wall - this bed gets very little sun (just a bit from around 3.30 to 6 pm). I had not had much success glowing flowering plants or shrubs here and would like some suggestions of flowering plants/ shrubs which grow well in the shade. Answer: The problem with flower beds below walls is not so much the lack of sun but the fact that these areas are often dry as the wall stops rain from falling on the area nearest to it. The best thing you can do is to improve the soil to help it retain moisture and give the plants a better chance of survival. Begin by digging over the whole area to loosen up the soil, whilst doing this add a good amount of well rotted manure or other organic matter. Before planting, soak the plants in a bucket of water to ensure the roots are wet. Dig a deep hole and add more manure into the hole before planting. Fill the hole then add a good thick layer of mulch on top of the soil. The mulch can be more manure or chipped bark or slate, anything you like really, they all help keep moisture in the soil. Water well for the first couple of weeks and during dry spells. To keep the soil in good condition add a thick layer of well rotted manure to the bed each autumn, there's no need to dig it in. I have searched Crocus.co.uk and found a number of plants which like dry shade. These should give you a good start. Click here to see them. Once the soil has improved you could try planting plants that prefer more moist conditions, have a look here for some ideas. I hope this helps and that your bed improves soon. Let me know if you have any more questions.

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