SHADY RESIDENTIAL
A Shade Garden in the Wildwood Neighborhood of Chicago
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The rich soil of this shade garden supports flowers, grasses and sedges. Flowers include Wild Blue Phlox, Phlox divaricata, Miterwort or Bishop's Cap, Mitella diphylla and Wild Golden Glow, Rudbeckia laciniata. |
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Rich soil and shade from Oaks make this an ideal Woodland Garden. The beds are defined by intersecting, mulched paths. The Hostas will be the next to go. |
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This small, narrow bed has it all - Crested Dwarf Iris, Iris cristala, in a Rock Garden, a hollow log and other flowers and grasses. Rocks and logs add interest and character to the beds. |
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Wake Robin or Red Trillium, Trillium erectum, adds its color. This Trillium is easily distinguished by its molted leaves. |
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Miterwort or Bishop's Cap, Mitella diphylla, has delicate cup-shaped flowers containing a few hard black seeds. Wild Blule Phlox, Phlox divaricata, (upper right corner) forms large clumps less than a foot tall. |
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Columbine, Aquilegia canadensis, with its yellow-orange-red flowers is a real crowd pleaser. It will grow in full sun to shade and spreads readily. A great dividend is that it may attract hummingbirds to your garden in Spring. It likes average to dry soil and will grow in sandy areas. |
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See how the character of the shed was enhanced when the split rail fence, door posts, barrel rings and watering can were added. |
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Sedges are grass-like plants usually about a foot tall. They have triangular stems, neat seed heads, bloom early and stay green all year. Remember: “sedges have edges" -- the stems are triangular. |
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Green Dragon, Arisaema dracontium, is a close relative of Jack-in-the-Pulpit, Arisaema triphyllum. The two are usually found living together in rich healthy woods. The spadix (long orange narrow tongue) protrudes several inches out of the spathe. |
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Is this sort of medieval weapon? No! It is the Common Bur Sedge, Carex grayi. This sedge will form large clumps if planted in the sun, but is more typically found in more wet shady areas. |
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Elm-leaf Goldenrod, Solidago ulmifolia, Great Blue Lobelia, Lobelia siphilitica, and Cardinal Flower, Lobelia cardinalis, provide a symphony of color. |
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An old log naturally laid in a flower bed makes the whole concept of the garden more interesting. It can act as a matrix (or home) for moss and lichen to grow as well as for the wood boring larvae of many insects.
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