Post date: Jun 4, 2020 4:09:11 PM
Notes on growing in shade:
You will see many pictures and lists online about plants that grow in shade. You will also venture to sow and find you get nothing like those pictures.
Plants are photosynthesis machines that use the sunlight to make chlorophyll and sugars and store them as carbs. Even the humble grass won’t grow in shade.
Various shades of shade exist. Complete darkness from buildings, mottled shade below trees, and partial shade of sunlight for a few hours. The last one holds hope.
First, shade is conducive only for leafy plants. Fruiting plants won’t flower or they will yield too less in shade.
Second, herbs that have essential oils that will evaporate in the sun, grow best in shade.
Third, perennials are better than annuals as shade crops. The trick is co-existence.
Fourth, seeds won’t germinate in shade. So grow them in a pot and transplant.
You want to make the plant big, sowing them in ideal conditions in a pot. Then you transplant in the shade. That plant will be big and have a good root system and will learn to survive in shade.
If you have a patch that gets 2-3 hours of sun, same tricks work. You can grow edible greens instead of herbs alone.
Make sure that the soil is enriched with compost and transplant. Quite thickly. They will grow like a ground cover and live happily below the tree. Not rapid growth but slow and steady survival.