I have a good question for someone who's not a rookie....

Hello...will be starting my second season of gardening this spring and had some questions related to an area in which nothing seems to like to be planted.
Area is between my house and a fence (8x25ft). Ranges from light shade on the ends of the area to heavy shade in the middle. There are some elm(?) tree roots, but thought I could plant between them without too much trouble. Dirt was amended with topsoil and compost...but it's still pretty heavy (no matter how freshly worked, it compacts in a short time because rain falls and nothing grows there). Seems to be a vicious circle.
Any ideas for plants that are not fussy about heavy soil and shade conditions? Zone 5a.
I actually tried seeds in this area, but to no avail. Rain washed it out so quickly nothing could get going. Guess this is a job for starter plants and not seeds?

i havce a ground cover that is good for heavy shade i beleive they call it bugle weed.. has rounded leaves spreads through roots. and in spring has spikes of purple flowers on it. seems to be pretty tough. if you like i could this spring dig some up and send you some of it.
shirley flora

Also try hostas (Plantain Lily) as well as Fenten Rose.

Both of them like very shady spots.

Dave

You could try the lasagna method of preparing the area. Check out this book for more information.
"Lasagna Gardening" by Patricia Lanza
I have heavy clay soil too. This method really helps.

Sharon

I have vinca minor under a lot of my trees...pretty purple flower and evergreen, very, very easy. There is also a white one and some miniatures, but I haven't grown these. A lot of tree leaves (I'm not sure about elm) have a growth inhibitor in them and many things just won't grow there. You can also mow the vinca if you want to control areas of growth.

Lily-of-the-valley, fern, and Japanese spurge are shade plants.
Awhile back I was watching "Gardening by the Yard" and it had a segment on shade plants. I copied the list of plants because I have a lot of shade in my yard. Just in case you are interested, here it is.
begonia, coleus, impatiens, forget-me-nots, pansy, bleeding heart, Jacob's ladder, bugbane, campanula, coralbells, foxglove, goatsbeard, day lilies, Virginia bluebells, monkshood, phlox, lungwort, English ivy, mondo grass, pachysandra, spirea, vinca, boxwood, holly, hydrangea, nandina, viburnum.
The only way to deal with clay is to add a lot of organic matter. I have subsoil to work in here. I take out a small section at a time. As I put in a plant, I ammend the soil in that area. All of my plants have done very well.
Hope this helps some.
Smiles,
Gabrielle

I have a shady trouble spot where I have planted sweet woodruff and it's thriving. Its a beautiful little plant. It doesn't seem to mind the clay soil a bit. I'm zone 4-5 :)

hi there

have you tried adding leaf mold, horticultural sand and grit to the soil to open it up?

Alann Titchmarsh of 'Gardeners World' on the BBC does this. according to his book 'complete book of gardening' you should also add lime provided you do a soil test first to see if it contains lime. adding more wont help.

here is a quote from the book
" don't spend a fortune on clay cures. instead spread 2 inches of gritty sand over the surface and fork it in or spread grit. then spread a thick organic mulch on top and let the worms mix it for you"

Mark
Northern Ireland

I also have heavy clay and I amend my soil, hole by hole before I plant (or bed by bed). You might check www.shadyoaks.com to get some ideas for shade plants from their catalog and maybe you will be lucky enough to find some of them here. The bugleweed that SEED_QUEEN mentioned is ajuga. I have some and it is a tough plant, with green/maroon leaves and pretty spikes of blue blooms in the spring. I think Dave meant Lenten Rose (Helleborus) which blooms very, very early, in some areas, during the winter. You may also want to try coleus or caladium bulbs in the spring, if your nights don't get too cool.

Yeah, I meant Lenten Rose. My fingers must have slipped. :)

I have shade & clay too. My first solution is to look for plants that are described as invasive (by root) or aggressive. I know this sounds radical, but it is a good way start to breaking up the soil and, in the clay, they never really get invasive. Then I go get the free shredded yard clipping mulch from the county lanfill and layer it on. Over time, it works in and the plant roots help too. I've heard concerns from others re: weed seeds in the mulch, but I've never had a problem. Have you thought of Lamb's Ear (Stachys byzantina)? Also check out Lauren Springers book The Undaunted Garden for more suggestions. Good luck!

Dew

I have a spot at the side of my garage that is 24x8feet of heavy clay, damp (it was too damp for hosta), and shade 60% or more of the day. I was at a plant swap 2 springs ago I traded for a "plant that grows anywhere like crazy". The start fit in a coffee can. I grew like crazy. I dug it up the first year and divided it to cover the entire side of my garrage area. I am going to divide again this spring. The plant turned out to be a rudbeckia "goldquelle". It gets almost 6ft tall and has large double yellow flowers that don't resemble the rest of the coneflowers at all. BTW I have seeds on my trade list. I have never tried to raise them from seed for obvious reasons. Sari

I had the same problem with a small area in my yard. try ajuga (bugleweed) it grows anywhere,it is beautiful color all year. I ended up using a glazing ball with stand and some ajuga. It filled up the whole area.GOOD LUCK!!

I have had very good luck with the daylily Kwanso- a multiple petal variety of the '''''ditch lily", pretty, needs no care, extra water. Mine grew in dry, shady heavy soil and in the fall I just mow it down.