Hallo –

    Das ist ein kleines Bett vor meiner Kellertür. Es ist etwa 4 Fuß tief und 11 Fuß lang. Es ist schattig und kann leicht bewässert werden. Ich bin im Piemont von VA, Zone 7b.

    Es dauerte noch gut fünf Jahre, bis das Reh die Funkie fand, aber diese Zeiten sind vorbei. Und ich habe das Interesse an Iris verloren, die eine Woche lang hübsch aussehen und dann den Rest schlaff und widerspenstig sind.

    Es gibt einen Farn, dem es gut geht und den ich behalten möchte (der sich aber überall im Beet bewegen kann). Alles andere liegt auf dem Hackklotz. Ich habe vor, Krokusse für die frühe Frühlingsfärbung einzusetzen. Was kann ich hier noch einpflanzen? Ich möchte ein Bett bauen, das das ganze Jahr über interessant ist.

    Da wir Imker sind, bevorzuge ich unbedingt hirschresistente, einheimische und bestäubungsfreundliche Pflanzen. Duftend ist schön, aber nicht notwendig. Ich denke über Zwergsträucher mit einigen Stauden nach, weiß aber nicht, was ich pflanzen soll. Ich hätte wirklich gerne eine coole Solitärpflanze, die ich an den höheren Teil der Stützmauer stellen könnte.

    Jeder Rat wird sehr geschätzt. Danke!

    Von: RealisticBike4953

    Share.

    35 Comments

    1. floppy_twat on

      Trilliums! They are great ground cover and they don’t take up much space

    2. Tiarella are my favorite shady plant. And so far the deer don’t like them. There’s a lot variety as far as the foliage and the flowers are cute

    3. Low_Tangerine8605 on

      I could see some creeping phlox for interest , hosta (I know deer), sedge, and purple fountain grasses here. Oh and maybe a candy corn in here.

    4. AdobeGardener on

      I’m always looking for space in my few spots of shade, so I’m jealous. And VA is a great plant region (and apparently you grow lots of deer too – lol!). Crocus tommasinianus (Tommies) may be a little more deer resistant than the others. I’d add a few groupings of naturalizing daffodils too. Perhaps add a natural looking group of 3 or so landscape rocks that your daffs can poke their heads over (and have their dying foliage hidden after), with your Tommies in front of the rocks in groups. Then a perennial nearby, such as brunnera, to grow foliage and take over (lovely airy light blue spring flowers).

      You have a nice background of red brick and then the blue flowers from the neighbor. So I’d use that as part of your design. Low plants in the middle, with taller plants each side to frame that view. Bleeding heart is pretty, foliage lasts til later in summer. A groundcover fern that ties everything in could be nice such as oak (deep shade/moisture, gorgeous or Himalayan fern can handle lighter shade but no sun, pretty layering foliage – both spread), especially growing up around your birdbath to soften the edges of the cement. Lady in Red ferns are upright, tough ferns for taller accents. A few spots of wild ginger for accent foliage. The chartreuse of some coral bells would add some lightness and wands of flowers (the darker colors are more sun resistent), although sometimes the deer will get into them. An upright narrow yew or three for the back corner can fill that space for balance. A nice natural mulch can also tie everything together plus hold in some moisture.

      You don’t need a lot of different plants – groups will work well, with accents here and there. Good luck.

    5. Helpful_Importance35 on

      I agree with trillium! For added and dependable mounds of contrast I adore purple oxalis with a couple of capsicum bulbs in the middle for height. Persian shield is gorgeous and for trailing by the bricks either creeping jenny (check your zone to make sure it’s okay because some places people say it takes over but I’ve never had that experience) or ice plant string of turtles, begonias in the back and Swedish ivy in a hanging basket suspended by a shepherd’s hook. There are many options- I can send you pics of what I did in my back yard if you want to message me!

    6. notwitty79 on

      Camilla is an evergreen that typically blooms in the fall. They come in several sizes, depending on your preference.

    7. Arkhus9753 on

      Coleus – I’m amazed at how many different types and colors there are

    8. BigPerspective5860 on

      I use a product called Liquid Fence to keep the deer out of things. Works pretty well and only needs to sprayed every few weeks. Good
      Luck

    9. Roses_all_day on

      Agree with the suggestion for Tiarella, ..id put hostas upfront, and then I’d put astilbe and woodland aster (shade tolerant! whooo!)…choose some astilbe varieties that bloom earlier and some later. If you really want to go for it, add some toad Lilys in the back for late fall interest. 

    10. reallyreally1945 on

      Your neighbor’s blue salvias appear to be thriving. Maybe some liriope for times when the salvia dies back.

    11. LeGrandePoobah on

      How shady is shady- is it truly shade or is it more partial shade?

    12. Prestigious_Pie9421 on

      If I didn’t already have a small herb garden there I’d plant one. Parsley, basil, sage, and maybe oregano if you have time to watch it and keep it from taking over. I use a lot of oregano so have a big portion of my herb garden with just oregano.

    13. Periwinkles and bachelor buttons, and maybe even a small lilac closer in toward the house – those would all compliment your neighbor’s choices, who knows. I will say that bird bath base is a safety hazard and serves no good purpose, and if it were my place, I’d get rid of the wooden bed walls and put in possibly a low boxwood hedge from the exit wall straight out past that bird bath (I’d keep the bird bath itself, maybe even right where it is, except lose the base disc) and then over to the wall by your lamp. Hedge perimeter and plants replaced by used brick pavers could be loverly with a small furnished reading/chatting space and some potted things – weeeeeee – like picking up a whole “nature” room without paying higher taxes.

      Oh, wait – now I realize this is all one home. OK, periwinkles for ground cover, and a small lilac closer to the house. Turn the uphill space into a patio, maybe.

    14. ManchuKenny on

      Strawberries bergonia, impatiens, columbine just to name a few. My old house is under 6 gigantic trees, i lived through it

    15. Bea_virago on

      I have a deep and abiding love for heartleaf alkanet, which looks particularly lovely next to ferns, columbine, lily of the valley (make sure it’s not invasive in your area), bleeding heart, and hellebore.

    16. freerangetacos on

      An assortment of herbs! Fertilize that soil and bring it up to maximum health. Then put in some chives, rosemary, thyme, parsley, oregano, sage, i.e. stuff that grows into late fall in your area. And then next spring, get basil, cilantro, dill, some garlic. Do NOT plant any mint!!! Only ever have mint in a separate container away from a garden in the ground. Mint takes over and is unstoppable. So keep it separate. Happy cooking!

    17. Sammie123321 on

      Anything really, still gets lots of light from what I see in the pic.
      Geraniums, nasturtiums, cosmos, four o clocks, pansy’s
      Think more about what height of a plant you want, that’s more important imo

    18. Bubbly_Expression_41 on

      Look for anything perennial shade plants like hosta, ferns, heuchera or bleeding hearts.

    19. Amateurgarden on

      I’m always a big supporter of hydrangeas and astilbe for shaded or slightly sunny areas

    20. I know Hosta’s seem to be used everywhere but they would actually look good in that area. You may want to find something that likes shade with some height to it in the back to kinda fill it in a bit. Best of luck!

    21. JudeBootswiththefur on

      If you were in the US look at the prairie moon website. They have all native. For non-native I love lungwort and brunnera. Both bloom early spring, and deer or bunnies have not touched mine.

    22. facedownasteroidup on

      combo of hostas and a couple bleeding hearts in the back, lungwort towards the front

    23. dammitall0 on

      I’ve recently planted Itea Fizzy mizzy and Kodiak fresh diervilla both around listed as about 3’x3′ when mature (there are a number of Kodiak varieties of various sizes), they are both listed as deer resistant but I don’t have deer so I cannot vouch for just how deer resistant they are. They are nice little shrubs though, they can take shade and don’t require much attention. (I dislike most shrubbery but have resigned myself to needing some as I get older and don’t have the time/energy to fuss over as much of the garden as I used to.) My Sun King aralias arrive this week, everyone selling them lists the size as 3’x3′ but people growing them say they get much larger, I hope mine do, I am so in love with this one! In the spring I’m contemplating both Soft caress and Groovy glow mahonia for my shady areas. (If someone has mature soft caress I’d love to see it, so hard to find pictures of mature plants.)

      Good luck, hope you find something you love to fill the space.

    24. For year-round deer-resistant native shade in 7b, try a dwarf fothergilla Blue Shadow as the wall specimen, a short row of Itea Little Henry or dwarf inkberry for structure, then a groundcover matrix of foamflower, golden ragwort, heuchera americana, Pennsylvania sedge, Virginia bluebells, blue wood aster, and Christmas fern to keep bloom and texture rolling. Set the fothergilla off center near the tall wall, arc the itea or inkberry along the brick edge, and weave the groundcovers around your fern so the crocus can pop through in spring. I usually use [Gardenly](https://gardenly.app) to visualize my ideas, maybe give that a try.

    Leave A Reply