Shady side yard with hosta, ferns and other shade perennials
Years ago when my children were still very young, we bought our first home – a duplex on the east side of Milwaukee. Like most of the neighboring houses, it was a large structure set on a small yard and as a new homeowner I was determined to make the most of my space. I immediately set out to plant a few vegetables in the strip of land between our house and the neighbors.
It was a complete bust. Apparently vegetables need sunshine and when they are forced to live in the shade, they survive as spindly, sad little plants that never do much. I found that no amount of watering or fertilizing could overcome the lack of sunshine. It was a hard lesson.
When the next spring arrived, I decided to replace the failed vegetable garden with perennials. Learning what sort of plants will grow and thrive in the shade was the obvious challenge. I was not going to repeat last year’s mistakes!
Starting with a few gardening books, I placed ferns and and hosta plants in the most shaded areas. Each year I also tried plants labeled partial shade in the front area that got a few hours of sunshine each day. That city garden was a work in progress for many years. I was always out in the yard, moving plants around, mulching and watering.
Many years later when we purchased our current home, we retained the duplex as a rental. I decided to keep the yard as a garden instead of planting it back into shrubs and grass as it had been originally. That meant a drive of about 20 miles for me every time I wanted to check on the garden.
At first I went at least once a week, but found that was really a pain. Then I realized the perennials, already nicely established, didn’t need me much at all. It was the annuals, especially the impatiens that were a problem, especially if we had a dry summer. I decided to make some changes.
Now I plant some tulips in the fall and a few annuals for color in the spring. I do a bit of fertilizing, mulching and moving things around at those times especially if some of the plants have become too crowded. Occasionally I even try a new perennial if I think it will add color and be able to survive without a lot of pampering. Then I stand back and let the garden grow on its own unless we have a dry spell. I do still make the drive to water the plants if we go too long without rain. I have gone from checking that garden every week to just a few times each summer and the garden still looks great!
I personally think that a garden makes a house look homey and contributes a lot to its curb appeal. I also found that working on the garden at a rental property is a great way to keep in touch with the neighbors and learn what is going on in the neighborhood. Sometimes I even get unsolicited reports on my tenants’ behavior. While I am not always happy about those bits of information, I decided it’s better to find out about our tenants having large noisy parties from the neighbors than from the police!
Whenever we rent to a new tenant I ask if they like flower gardens. I keep hoping for someone with a green thumb who would like helping with the watering, but so far no luck!