Shade Gardening In Rocky Soil

Living on a one lane road in a wooded area has its advantages. The many trees help keep the air cooler during the summer months, and cleaner in all other seasons. My family enjoys the privacy the greenery provides for us. Each season has its own beauty, and we have a view of it from every window.

But shade gardening in rocky soil strictly limits the varieties and types of plants that may be used in a garden. Plus many shade loving plants are annuals; only surviving one season. It is a constant battle to keep something growing, and so when any new plant that thrives in shade comes along, we are willing to give it a try. Rocky soil is yet another challenge, but one that has to be tackled. It is helpful to keep a compost pile, so there is a good supply of healthy soil on hand. Why buy it when you can have it just from saving your leftover fruit and vegetable scraps? You can keep them on hand on an out of the way part of your property. But it is good to have a good sized bag of potting soil on hand too, depending on your particular needs, and some plant food as well.

If you are serious about shade gardening in rocky soil, you will need the following list of garden tools:

Trowel

Rock Hammer

Pick-Ax

Extra potting soil

Watering can

Plant food

Perlite

Scissors

No dainty pink garden gloves, large brimmed hat, or plastic trowel works for me. My favorite garden tool is my Father’s rock hammer! And if that fails, onward to the pick-axe!

You can never go wrong with hostas, they are they are the ultimate shade loving plants, and they will thrive on neglect, but if you take good care of them, will grow larger each year, sprouting a large purple or lavender flower in the middle. They come in many varieties now. We have several that have so much yellow in them they are almost chartreuse. Others have a bit of blue in them. The more common are varied shades of green with leaves edged in white.

Azaleas also like shade, and so do hydrangeas, or snowballs, as many of us referred to them as kids. Other shade lovers that cannot be ignored are impatiens. They come in so many colors now, and although they are annuals, you get a long growing season, from May until the first frost, which in New Jersey is usually around November 1^st. Since there is so much greenery in our area, I like to choose impatiens in bold colors, like the red or purple star or the orange ones. White and silvery dusty miller is a nice contrast to all these colors as well.

Rhododendrons are also very pretty, though they struggle in shade and rocky soil, we have several that do pretty well and produce blossoms of pale pink flowers. If you need to break up clumps of rocky or clay like soil, loosen it up and mix it with the perlite. They are little white balls that will help air get into the soil so the roots of your plants can breathe, and can be bought at any garden store. Handle the roots of the potted plant gently, and use the soil they came in, mixed with your own, and possibly some perlite. It's healthy, and will help absorb the shock a plant endures when being replanted. The plant may look "shocked" for a few days, make sure you water it well, and it will perk up.

This year we were particularly happy to discover two new plants! We had to pull out yew hedges that were turning the house’s cream colored aluminum siding green, and found a great ground cover called perennial bugleweed. The directions say it needs 4-6 hours of sun, but they are thriving in a shady area of rocky soil, providing more color than we hoped. They grow to about 6” high, green, but some of the leaves are silvery and shimmery, with little purple flower blooms about 2” high coming out of them as they reach their top height. So now that they are filling in, they look great, and will stay low.

Another great find was Achillea or “Moonshine” Once again the tag said only “part sun”, but they are doing well in a shady and rocky area. They are yellow and the bright splash of color is really appreciated amidst all that green. They also attract butterflies and hummingbirds.

Spiraea bushes also come in many colors, and love to grow in shady, rocky areas with little attention. We have purple ones that have become bushy, but not too tall. Now they are available in yellow, white, pink, and many other colors.

Planting bulbs in the Fall is always great, because when all those lovely crocus, grape muscari, daffodils and tulips appear after a snowy and dreary winter, you have a beautiful and cheery display, and you’ve already done most of the work! Fall bulbs do well then because the leaves have not yet begun to bloom on the trees, so full sun is available for a few months. I find its best to let the autumn leaves cover them through the winter, it keeps your bulbs warmer and protected.

So if you have shade and rocky soil, do not become discouraged if you love to garden. If anything is planted in an area of soil and survives, even if it struggles, it will improve the soil for the next growing season. You only need to keep trying new varieties of plants, and to be patient. Gardening is a calming hobby, as it makes you feel relaxed and close to the Earth. If you are digging and weeding even for a half hour a day, it counts as exercise too! So go for it! Not only will your family enjoy the fruits of your labors, but so will your neighbors!