Gardening-Light Requirements

Last night, I started researching the light requirements for plants. A large proportion of my yard is shaded. That is one of the reasons we fell in love with our house because of the large, mature shade trees that were already established. Gardens require lots of sun. When we were going to start a garden couple of years ago, there was only one place in our backyard that had enough sun during the day so that is where the garden ended up.

Since our initial garden set-up, I have redesigned our landscaping to include more edible plants. That leaves more space open for actual garden plants within reason. I still want to maintain a nice looking yard so I am careful what I plant in my flower beds. Fortunately, there are many options that are pretty as well as edible. That is why I started looking at light requirements last night.

Sunlight is one of the key ingredients to look at when planning garden and other plantings. Gardens and plants will fail or require a lot more upkeep if planted in the wrong sun area. One other thing I look at each year is there are several northern species of plant I like which can be grown here if they are shielded from our hot afternoon sun. When I am looking at new plants, I first look at the light requirement. I have spent time watching our sun patterns. I know where in our yard gets morning, afternoon or all day sun. I also know when the shade starts to creep over my flower beds and gardens in the afternoon.

This brings me on the first recommendation when you start planning a garden area or new plantings within your landscaping. Gardens need to be planted in the area of the yard that gets that most sun. When planning new plantings or areas of your landscaping, look up the light requirements of the plants that you want to plant. Next, go outside at different times of the day and look where the sunlight is falling. Find the direction and path that the sun takes across the sky. When your trees are leafed out this spring, check the shade patterns of each. This will give you a good idea of how much sun each area of your yard is getting.

Happy planning!