Plants for shade part eight. Groundcover plants have a valuable role in sun or shade but I find them especially useful in darker conditions. If a particular plant wants to spread so much the better. Some species are clumpers by nature, others are carpeters, both useful characteristics to fill patches of otherwise bare soil. Also useful are plants that weave in and out of other plants. 

 Case in point Hedge Woundwort (Stachys sylvatica) and Wood Spurge (Euphorbia amygdaloides var. robbiae) increase by means of wiry underground runners. Thus the dark red flower spikes of S. sylvatica and the lime green shuttlecock flowers of E. amygdaloides proliferate in shady settings.

 

 Plants for shade part seven. Garlic Mustard (Alliaria petiolata) is a prolific native of hedgerows and the woodland edge. The leaves do indeed taste of garlic and mustard. There are a good many annuals that tolerate a few hours of shade during the course of the day but they are basically sun lovers. However some of the biennials like A. petiolata are worth introducing to shady gardens.   

 Likewise Honesty (Lunaria annua) will grow in quite deep shade though it prefers brighter shade. It has naturalised widely but was probably introduced to the UK as a garden plant. Despite being called L. annua it is always biennial in my experience. Typically it has purple flowers but there is also the beautiful white flowered variation as seen above. 

 I've never really thought of it an edible but Martin Crawford says the leaves, flowers and tap roots can be eaten. Perhaps I'll put that to the test because both the purple and white forms self-seed copiously round my garden (as does Garlic Mustard).

 Plants for shade part six. Spring flowering bulbs are useful when planting shady areas. Woodland species like the Common Snowdrop (Galanthus nivalis) and the Wild Daffodil (Narcissu pseudonarcissus) are shade tolerant by nature. It's worth noting however that their period of growth takes place early in the year to take advantage of the available light before the tree canopy leafs up. This is generally referred to as "dappled shade".

 For deep shade the options are limited. Ramsons (Allium ursinum) are a good choice but they need a very moist soil to flourish. Forest gardeners and foragers are fond of Ramsons because they live up to their other common name: Wild Garlic. They can be prolific and pungent in damp woods. 

 Our native Bluebell (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) will grow in a good deal of shade but I have found it rather tricky to establish in garden settings though it carpets many ancient woodlands. NB nearly all Bluebells sold by the bulb trade are actually a hybrid of H. non-scripta and the Spanish Bluebell (H. hispanica) though it doesn't say that on the packet. 

 As the shade closes in woodland bulbs become dormant but there is an exception. The Ivy-leaved Cyclamen (Cyclamen hederifolium) provides a lovely coda for the shade garden. It flowers in late summer/early autumn in even the deepest, driest shade. Strictly speaking it's a coum rather than a bulb but never mind. Reversing the usual order of things C. hederifolium flowers first then comes into leaf forming a good ground cover over the winter months.

 

 A walk beginning and ending in Hitchin. Actually the first leg was a bus ride to St. Paul's Walden. I arrived on the dot of opening time so stopped for a pint in the Strathmore Arms. I was the only customer and sat by a window watching rabbits running across the field opposite in bright sunshine.

 Then I strolled off through the highways and byways disturbing the occasional pheasant. There are a good many hereabouts and I saw a shooting party in the distance. Man with shotgun vs. waddling bird that can barely fly doesn't seem like a very even contest to me. I suppose there are people who enjoy that sort of thing.

 It was a glorious late autumn day with a distinct chill of winter in the air. I know this stretch of countryside well but still managed to walk in circles at one point trying to find the right path. I decided to adjust the route I had planned to take in a pint at the Red Lion in Preston. Quite by chance some friends were having a drink there and we had a chinwag before I wended my way back to Hitchin. 

 The countryside hereabouts is rolling and undulating; these are the outer reaches of the Chilterns. There are some big arable fields, a certain amount of grazing land and numerous pockets of deciduous woodland. 

 

 Plants for shade part five. Yellow Archangel (Lamium galeobdolan) and Oriental Borage (Trachystemon orientalis) are not deterred by shade, even dry shade. Their tendency to spread makes them good ground cover plants- a useful characteristic to cover bare soil where not much else will grow. Yellow Archangel has variegated foliage all year round. Oriental Borage has big coarse leaves through the spring and summer months. Both have masses of flowers early in spring and attract emerging bumblebees.

 It is sometimes said that bees do not forage in shade. Bees favour flowers in the sun but if there is nectar and pollen to be had in shade they will seek it out, particularly in spring when woodland flowers are at their peak. The aforementioned Comferys and Geraniums are also top bee plants.

 Plants for shade part four. There are Symphytum species to suit a wide range of growing conditions. We might amend Margery Fish's advice about Geraniums to say "When in doubt, plant Comfrey".

 S. ibericum makes excellent ground cover in partial and full shade as does S. grandiflorum (above). Actually it seems to be somewhat obscure whether they are in fact the same species. Both have acquired the common name Creeping Comfrey.

 Several of the taller Comfreys are tolerant of quite deep shade. White Comfrey (S. orientale) is at its most flowery in sun but still grows well in darker spots. 

 Plants for shade part three. "When in doubt, plant a geranium" said the gardener and writer Margery Fish. There is a hardy geranium that will suit just about any aspect and that includes shade. For example Geranium phaeum will clump up and flower in sun, part shade or full shade. 

 Several other species like the low growing ground covering Geranium macorrhizum are similarly versatile. Indeed this seems to be a plant family with good tolerance generally to at least partial shade. I should also mention the humble weed/wildflower Herb Robert (Geranium robertianum) which seeds itself very readily all over the place.

 

 Plants for shade part two. Greater Periwinkle (Vinca major) is a stalwart of the shady garden: an evergreen sub-shrub that spreads vigorously even in the deepest shade. In part shade it has masses of flowers. In full shade the flowering might be limited but it still functions as a ground cover.

 Martin Crawford includes it in his book 'Creating a Forest Garden' noting that "The stems are thin and flexible and are very good for fine basketry work". That is borne out by the Latin name which derives from Vincire meaning bind.  

 

  Lesser Periwinkle (Vinca minor) also has a trailing and twining habit but is mat forming rather than bushy. Likewise it thrives in shade but I find V. major to be the stronger growing of the two in full shade.

 

 Green Park, London 930am. 

Autumn is the time of low raking sun, long shadows and falling leaves.

 

 Plants for shade part one. Planting shady gardens bears out the adage "right plant, right place". The right plant will generally be one whose natural habitat is woodland. For example Oregon Grape (Mahonia aquilfolium) is a species of the forest understory on the Pacific side of North America.

 M. aquilfolium grows fine in sun but it's useful as a suckering shrub beneath trees. Most of the plants I'll mention in these entries are relevant to agroforestry i.e. forest gardening with a permaculture ethos. Oregon Grape flowers bright yellow in spring and does indeed have grape-like berries in autumn which are noted for being edible raw and cooked (though very tart by all accounts).

 A trio of plants I purchased on the way back from the Blean on Friday. The one with reddening leaves is Mahonia japonica. The other two are Common Dog Rose (Rosa canina) and Rosa rugosa. Horticulturalists have long been preoccupied with breeding roses but these are wild species. Dog Rose is native to the UK but its range extends across Europe, North Africa and South West Asia. Rugosa hails from coastal areas of East Asia, North China, Korea and Japan and is widely grown as a garden plant. 

 I stopped off at Faversham to check out a nursery/garden centre called Edibleculture. Sure enough they have a very interesting selection of plants with an emphasis on edibles. One touch I particularly liked was the cardboard containers they use. They grow and display their plants in plastic pots and transfer them when sold- a brilliantly simple idea. The containers were more than adequate to get the plants home and indeed can be planted straight into the ground.

 Plastic has its uses- for things you want to last forever. A plastic pot can be used over and over again. Our problem with plastic is that we treat it as a disposable item.

 

 Today I walked through the Blean, a large area of woodland that lies between Whitstable and Canterbury. In some ways this is the most scenic time of year for a walk in the woods; the bare bones of the wood are apparent but saturated with autumn colour.   

 The Blean has been described as a semi-natural woodland of ancient origins which is true of much of the remaining tree cover of the British Isles. We live in a small country and there probably isn't any true wilderness i.e. completely untouched and unchanged by human activity. The Blean is a case in point. It has clearly been shaped by uses such as coppicing, habitation, leisure etc. 

 Oliver Rackham was one of the great authorities on the subject and in his opinion there is no extant "wildwood" and probably hasn't been since the Neolithic era. In this context "ancient" is a relative term. For example a wood that can be traced back to mediaeval records may nonetheless have grown on land that was previously cleared for agriculture. Rackham does note however that ancient woods may have originally contained surviving fragments of wildwood.

 One intriguing development in the Blean is the plan for "re-wilding" sections of it. The areas shown above and below are due to be fenced off to allow bison to roam!

  

 

 Pruning is generally best undertaken in autumn through winter into spring during the dormant phase of a plant's life cycle. I lopped this Hawthorne hedge which had become rather tall and leggy. A nice task for a damp, grey day. Hawthorne will become a tree left to its own devices but can stand a hard prune.

 Recommendations for exactly when to prune vary from plant to plant but dormancy is usually the key. As a rule its best to avoid serious pruning when a plant is in full growth. There are exceptions- for example Prunus species should be pruned between April and July when the sap is rising not falling.

 Hawthornes are so tough they'll cope with just about anything but the blossom in May is lovely with berries to follow so I make sure to prune well ahead of the buds forming. 

 

 

 Virginia Creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) is a very vigorous climber. Creeper is not really the right word for it! My father planted this one years ago but the mass of greenery is one year's growth. I cut it down to the ground in winter every year and by mid-September (when this photo was taken) it's practically up to the roof again.

 

  P. quinquefolia is spectacularly deciduous: always one of the first plants to change colour in autumn and fiery red. The photo above was taken in mid-October.

 The leaves turn from green to red in the space of a week or two. They fall with equal rapidity as shown in this photo taken at the end of October.

 

 I noted a couple of weeks ago that the trees in Green Park were still pretty green. The fall is well underway now and the leaves are going out in a blaze of glory.

 Seek and ye shall find! This bag packed with Iris foetidissima came courtesy of my flatmate through a curious bit of serendipity. I was pottering around in the garden and noted a few bare spots which are very shady where not much will grow.

 I. foetidissima is tough as old boots and will grow anywhere including the deepest shade. I already have it in various places around the garden: the fronds are evergreen, the flowers in early summer are exquisite (though tiny) and the crimson berries add a splash of colour through autumn into winter. So I thought to myself: more of the same would be ideal to fill those gaps.

 Shortly afterwards I was chatting with my flatmate. He mentioned in passing that he had just dug up clumps of this very plant in a local garden that went into their green waste bin!       

 Here is an unusual combination of plants: Comfrey and Wild Banana! Today I paid another visit to Edible Landscapes [see last entry] and this time I stayed to do several hours volunteering. Very mild and sunny for November and blue sky overhead as I pottered around tending to some autumnal tasks.

 The garden has over two hundred species of plants with a purpose- mainly edibles but there are also medicinal plants, dye plants and "system plants" i.e. plants that contribute to a thriving ecosystem. Forest gardening seeks to layer plants in a way that corresponds to forest ecology but mixes and matches plants from all over the world to do so. 

 In that context the above pairing is not so surprising. Comfrey is frequently used by permaculturalists as a ground cover and the banana plant seems to be holding its own as a taller perennial. Having said that I assume it has been planted as an experiment. I doubt a banana plant would fruit outdoors in UK conditions?

 NB There are various entries in this diary concerning the work of Martin Crawford at the Agroforestry Research Trust in Devon. He has done a good deal of practical research to make use of species from warmer latitudes which are nonetheless hardy in our climate. Further to that he has built a remarkable forest garden greenhouse to grow sub-tropical species on a large scale. [see entry dated 7th. May 2019]