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(post #15382, reply #1 of 13)
Ok I am new at this site, so I will try my best to figure it out.
I have my gardens planted but want to expand and make them more color full. When I know how to get pics here I will post some pics.
I will start to try to explain. If you look to my back yard to the left is a small garden around some trees. Then next I have a small pond with tress all around it, turning to the right the garden stretches out with mainly ferns and hostas This back stretch is my dilemma. From the pond on over it will flood if we get a lot of heavy rain. We have a drain in that feeds over to the left of the pond and pumps the excess water over to the woods beside us. Now when I say flood I mean it will come almost 20 feet up to the house.SO, I need plants that can stand the kind of flood if it happens. So many plants have rotted due to the fact of it sometimes staying so wet. Then it can go to being very dry.The left side of the yard where the sun comes up that flower bed gets shade. So the right side gets the morning sun. then the sun is over the center, on to the left side getting the harsh afternoon sun. Ok so now my question is, since the left gets the morning shade would you call it a shade garden? Or would you call the side that gets the afternoon shade a shade garden? Or neither. Can I plant full sun perennials on either side? I have mostly Hostas, ferns, lilys, astible's rodogrendums, ground cover,azaleas.
Now to the far left separated from the main yard by a bridge it is a bare area that is all under trees, that is my sanctuary area, but I want to plant something that will grow in this dense shade besides moss.And it has to be able to survive dry soil.Area is about 20 ft wide x120 deep with a small shed to the back.
A lot so soon I know.
Now how do I post pics here?
Edited 2/28/2008 10:03 pm ET by marie57
Edited 2/28/2008 10:05 pm ET by marie57
(post #15382, reply #2 of 13)
Hi, Marie, and welcome to the forum! First I should tell you that I live on the other side of the continent (Oregon), so I'm going to let some of our east-coasters get specific on plant suggestions. However, I can answer a couple of things for you. The area that gets morning shade and afternoon sun in the summer would do best with plants that want full sun. The morning sun and afternoon shade would probably do best with plants listed for full sun to part shade exposure. Neither of those areas is for plants that need shade. You mention water coming twenty feet up to the house, but I'm assuming you don't mean the water is 20' deep; am I right? These sorts of areas are called seasonal wetlands or riparian habitat, and you can find a lot of plants that will survive in them. Redtwig dogwood is a good example. Check with your local native plant society for some suggestions. Here in Oregon's Willamette Valley there are extensive areas of very similar habitat - submerged in the winter months and bone dry in summer - but we are in Zone 8 and I'm not sure how many of the things that work here would work for you. Trust me, though, they exist, and I'm sure others will chime in with suggestions soon.
Marty
"The plants have been good to us." Lester Hawkins
Marty
"The plants have been good to us." Lester Hawkins
(post #15382, reply #3 of 13)
I hope this works. These are the pics starting from the left on around to the right side of my yard.The area with the swing is the place that the drain is. That area will get a raised deck with a bench on it this year. They are backwards, the top photo is the last. I think....lol
Edited 2/29/2008 10:00 am ET by marie57
Edited 2/29/2008 10:06 am ET by marie57 http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v718/tinylady/gardens/Dscf1970.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v718/tinylady/gardens/benchgarden.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v718/tinylady/gardens/begining.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v718/tinylady/gardens/2yrsmaking.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v718/tinylady/gardens/Dscf1029.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v718/tinylady/gardens/Dscf1026.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v718/tinylady/gardens/Dscf1023.jpg
Edited 2/29/2008 10:11 am ET by marie57
Edited 2/29/2008 10:13 am ET by marie57
(post #15382, reply #4 of 13)
marie, that is a beautiful yard. It is hard to visualize twenty feet of water without it floodong the rooftops so you must not be refering to depth. You might try iris in the area tha gets good afternoon sun. I have louisiana iris in a wet place that gets mostly shade and I get a fair amount of bloom. The louisiana would do much better if it had full afternoon sun. Siberian iris would probably do well also. Iris pseudacorus (yellow flag) would certainly like these conditions. I would definately want to see if Japanese iris (i. ensata) would be happy here.
BJ
(post #15382, reply #5 of 13)
Thank You BeeJAy. I have been 5 years getting it that way. The ferns in the back where it floods smother out anything else I try to put there, but I don't want to get rid of the ferns. I was thinking about brining the flower bed out farther and planting a lower growing perennial. I installed the cement bench garden 2 years ago. It will probably look better this year. Now I have to figure out how to make the above ground pool that is in that yard look like it belongs there with the gardens. But I never see anyone with pictures showing how they did that.
Marie
(post #15382, reply #6 of 13)
Joe-Pye Weed would not mind the wet, but it's kind of wild and you might not like it. It is getting really popular now though and there are some shorter cultivars as opposed to the very giant wild one that grows around here in wet roadside ditches/wetlands. Hesperis, also known a Sweet Rocket or Dame's Rocket , would probably make it in wet/shady because it thrives here in southern Indiana along shaded creeks. If you are not familiar with it, it blooms in spring and looks like phylox a little and is purple or white. It is actually a biennial, but once established reseeds prolifically. You can cut it back after blooming, though and it will sometimes rebloom. These two plants are prolific in southern Indiana. There is also a swamp sunflower, but I can't remember its botanical name right now. Pat/Lunaria
(post #15382, reply #7 of 13)
Great pictures thanks for sharing them. Love the hostas and ferns. I live on a lake in zone4, Minnesota. I use the yellow flag iris, tall siberian iris different cultivars, I have Joe pye weed in the back of the garden against the cattails, I also have some meadowsweet, some common ditch lilies. I have planted monarda a couple different cultivars to see what they will do, also rudibeckia which has done great, there are some common cone flowers. This garden can be flooded at times and then it dries out at other times. These plants I've found to be very adaptable to the conditions in that particular garden.
(post #15382, reply #8 of 13)
The Gardens did not look so well last summer. I was invaded by the nasty Voles they ate a lot of my hosta and the new plants that I put in.
Is there any Tropicals that would survive there?
Thanks for the reply's
(post #15382, reply #9 of 13)
Voles can be a problem. I have snakes so they help. I have planted cannas up from the lake a bit and those are tropical, elephant ears are as well. I will start them inside first but the cannas I put right in the garden then pull them up before the freeze and store them in my storage room in the basement.
(post #15382, reply #10 of 13)
Perhaps some Corsican mint? Will tolerate the wet and also smells heavenly. It will tolerate foot traffic so is great with stepping stones.
http://www.rainyside.com/features/plant_gallery/herbs/Mentha_requienii.html
(post #15382, reply #11 of 13)
I like having a bench. I have one in a partially shady area and enjoy sitting there to rest and dry out after doing some intense gardening. It is also a good spot to eat my lunch and have nice glass of iced tea.
Your garden looks cool and inviting, most of mine is always in the sun.
New Mexico home organic gardener
Adopt the pace of nature; her secret is patience. Emerson
(post #15382, reply #12 of 13)
Since I read your post about corsican mint, been enjoying that web site. Thanks, Pat/Lunaria
(post #15382, reply #13 of 13)
You're welcome. I used to grow Corsican mint in my other garden but haven't been able to in this garden. It escaped into the lawn and whenever I would mow, it would smell wonderful.