Is There Anything To Plant

Hi .. I'm new here and I want to learn all about Gardening. I want to plant something along the side of my Garage but every time it rains the water from the roof runs down and makes a trench from the front to the back of my garage and there lays the water.( I hate that) Anyways might be a lost cause but geez is there anything that I can plant there that it wont bother?? It has been all dug out and only dirt is there now and its a sunny area .. Flowers of some sort or even herbs anything at all?
Thanks Brenda

Give us some dimensions of the area to be planted - and sending some images from a couple different vantage points would help too.

Brenda, do you want to plant in the space between the trench and the garage, or outside the perimeter of the trench? If there's a foot of space from the trench to the garage then you can plant hostas there, and you can plant on the other side of the trench as well. Hostas grow abundantly along the perimeter of my home next to the rainwater trench you are speaking of. They love water and the more it rains the happier they are.

The important thing to remember is the mature size of the plant, so measure the area and choose the appropriate size plant. Also if there's a drought they still need to be watered regularly. Your zone is 5a, which is perfect for hostas because they like to freeze in winter, but then you won't see them for five months of the year. We have mint growing next the a trench as well but it is invasive. - Nancy G.

I am not sure about Hosta in a sunny area, even with lots of water.

Diana, since the plot is next to the garage so it will get shade from the building. From my experience, hostas seem to prefer a mostly sunny environment, as long as they have enough water. They tend to grow bigger in the sun. There are different types of course, and we have about 10 varieties with different requirements but they all like tons of water and fertilizer.

Nancy G.

I dug a trench out and laid thick black polythene into the trench and up the sides, made some holes in bottom with garden fork, back filled with the soil and compost, have a wonderful bed filled with plants that like or can tolerate damp soil.
Hosta's are the most prevalent and several different types with white edges to leaf, yellow edges and of-course the taller ones with large leaves, in beside those are Lilly of the valley, enjoys shade from Hostas, have a small Acer, larger Camelea, orange Guem, and lots of other plants that can take a little damper soil, the trench is about 2 feet deep and to date 3-4 years later, the plants are now requiring separation and split With care, this bed could look really attractive by selecting the right plants, make the soil good with plenty humus added, I have been told that by adding some Charcoal to the bottom helps keep the damp soil sweet by personally never tried this.

Search for plants requiring good light but NOT long periods of direct sunlight AND require damp soil, You can always edge the bed with largish stones or logs, this offers some shade at the roots,
Hope it all works out for you and this area brings much pleasure to you and of-course colour along the garage.
Good luck and Best Regards.
WeeNel.

I guess my experience is limited to our hot summers, which will toast Hostas in anything more exposed than mild morning sun. They do fine on the north or east sides of buildings, never against a south or west facing wall. The OP said the area is sunny, so I just took that to mean all day sun, reflected off the wall as well.

Lets ask:

Brenda, when you say sunny, do you mean this wall faces more or less south, pretty much sun all day? And does the sun hit the garage wall, perhaps adding to the light and heat?

Idea:
I like the idea of digging a trench that can carry away most of the water, and lining the trench with big enough rock (min. 3" diameter) so the water can seep past the rock. Is there a place that is down hill enough from this area that the water can be directed?

How much space is there between the drip zone and the wall of the garage?

Diana, you are absolutely right about the hot weather affecting Hosta.s and for sure, without the moisture and shade in those conditions, they would never survive.
I was like DoGooder and understood the Garage was offering shade at least part of the day. anyway, sometimes we get the picture in our head wrong and there's nothing wrong with that, I can do that umpteen times a day LOL.

Diana, good point that sun is hotter in different climates! However, Brenda lives in a zone (5a) that is similar to mine (5b), so I gave her advice based on what works in the northeast. You provided a helpful diagram. Also hosta roots need to freeze in the winter to grow best, so that's another requirement that can't be had in a hot dry California climate. Because so many of my plants suffered when I started gardening a few years ago because I chose the wrong zone, I became obsessed with matching plants to climate and therefore I almost always I check a poster's climate to get an idea about what would thrive best in their region.

Nancy G.

Good to get some input from someone in or at least closer to that zone.