from shady to full sun

My neighbor recently passed away and her heirs have a tree service over there right now taking out all the old growth pines and other trees that have been shading my yard for over 100 years (well it hasn't been my yard, but it's been somebody's yard!)... and now the entire ecosystem is going to change.

I had a five foot border of English ivy that I am sure will now kick the bucket (anyone nearby want some?) and a hosta bed and pachysandra that will now be in full sun.

The yard itself used to be a meadow of wild strawberries and buttercups and many varieties of violets, now it will be a sunny area with no shade whatsoever.

Has anyone here gone through this kind of transition and if so, how did you cope with it?
My heart is aching for the animals that were nesting in the trees, and the hawk that used to roost in the branches... the birds that sheltered there and the squirrels that ran up and down at play.

This is going to mean our "special for shade" grass will probably die, too, right? And mowing goes from once every 2 weeks to weekly... almost impossible for my DH to keep up with it...

Any thoughts/advice will be appreciated.

Thanks,
Janie
edited for spelling

This message was edited Apr 11, 2005 2:02 PM

I had the very same thing happen to me last year. My hostas burned, but most everything else I had out there seems to have adapted. To save my hostas for this year I moved some of them to another local, and those that didn;t burn to badly I left. I planted a couple Pieris Japonica shrubs to help shield them from the hotest afternoon sun....time will tell if this has done any good.
Your pachysandra should recover and adapt....not sure about your hostas as I don;t know what varieties you have planted.
Not much help I know.....sorry
Good luck :-)

Marc

Ooof. Big change alright. I have been looking at wildflower gardening lately and planting for wildlife. I know it isn't much consolation for your situation, but maybe you could get some plants to help feed and shelter your displaced animals. Shrubs and fast growing trees for the birds? Seed- and fruit-producing plants for food? Is there a place you could hang a shade cloth to help shelter some of your plants?

http://www.prairienursery.com/

http://www.nwf.org/

http://www.harpstarps.com/shadecloth.htm

Just some ideas, sorry for your loss.

Wow, big change...That would stink. I love trees and would only take ours down if they were on the decline or endangering people or property. Had to take out a couple of ratty maples in front last year, and we just finished taking down our crabapple yesterday. :(

Your English ivy should fare okay, though it might scorch a little at first. Ours was in many hours of afternoon sun and was very healthy.

You could try starting some castor beans inside and plant them among your hosta and shade loving plants. They do grow very fast and are pretty too. It will give you some time to do some transplanting to a better spot., if you have one.
Good luck!
Bonnie

(((Janie)))

Big change in the look of your garden, I bet. I'm glad it's happening now while the sun isn't as intense - what a disastor it would have been in July! Now maybe some of your plants can slowly adjust in the milder weather.

Do you have a picture of your yard? That would help us with ideas to suggest. I have experience with "creative shade" but zone 5b is a looong way off from 9a and I'm not likely to have good plant suggestions for you.

How are your plants doing today?

What about something like this: http://www.simplywillow.co.uk/willow4/page3.html

That would make fast shade and it looks like a lot of fun.

It would be interesting in winter, too.

I'm getting over surgery (again) right now but will try to get a picture of the decimation of my yard for ya. :( Meanwhile thanks for the good ideas. It helps to think about alternatives.

This is the before picture, from end of May last year.

this is how it looks today.

Hey Janie,

Don't panic! I live in very hot and dry Arkansas. In July and August, temps get over 100 degrees, and we may go a month or more without rain. I have no real shade, and only filtered shade in a couple of areas. I have English ivy growing in almost full sun with no water. I rarely water anything. I've taught my plants to adjust to sun, heat, drought and neglect.

I also grow my hostas in almost full sun, as well as pachysandra. So I'm sure in your milder climate, you can too. The first year might be a little tough on them, but they will adapt.

Also, the hottest sun is afternoon sun. So if you're worried, you could move your hostas and such to a side of your house that gets morning sun but not much afternoon sun. They'll do fine. Our plants are tougher than we give them credit for. I have lots of shade lovers growing in the sun, and they're beautiful. Even my violets grow in almost full sun quite beautifully. They actually seem to like it.

Now, why don't you plant some beautiful ornamental flowering trees of your own, like a flowering almond, tulip poplar, butterfly bushes, lilacs or something you've been dreaming of. Recreate your little paradise. This is an opportunity for you to get creative and have a new dream garden.

My sister lives in OH near Wilmington. I went during 4th of July one year to landscape her new yard. OMG, it was heaven working out there! Y'all are 15 to 20 degrees cooler than we are! My brother in law, who was born and raised there, kept coming outside to tell me to come in and cool off. Shoot, y'all's summer is our spring! I was thrilled to work in such "cool" weather, and my BIL thought it was way too hot. LOL

NancyAnn

Thanks for your encouragement NancyAnn. We are weather wimps here in NE Ohio, that is for sure. We're even cooler up here near the lake than your sis in Wilmington.