Thinking spring, I attended a Master Gardener talk on shade gardening at Savage Branch of the Howard County Library System. Pat Greenwald, a Howard County Master Gardener, presented the topic "Color in the Shade." Can you picture a shady spot in your garden with color all year long, plants that provide color every season?
According to the Howard County Master Gardeners' website, extension.umd.edu/mg/locations/howard-county-master-gardeners, its mission is "to educate residents about safe, effective and sustainable horticultural practices that build healthy gardens, landscapes, and communities." The University of Maryland College of Agriculture and Natural Resources Extension Service administers the Master Gardener program.
Pat Greenwald said that in the last 10 years, the availability of different shade plants has increased and you can take joy from a colorful, elegant, restful, cozy shade garden. Don't forget to add different plant textures and leaf patterns to make your garden more inviting. A bench or some type of seating is vital.
Discussing drawbacks to a shade garden, Pat mentioned that buildings give off heat at night and that is not good for your plants. Buy heat-tolerant plants for near your house or other buildings. To improve your soil, Pat suggests using Leafgro or composting your own leaves for mulch.
We all know deer like to feast on hostas and many other shade plants. A friend told me that a Columbia neighbor had spent a lot of money having a large number of hostas planted in her yard and the very next day, deer had eaten the plants down to nubs. Joe-pye weed and American holly (native) are two of the many shade offerings that deer find unappetizing.
Pat provided attendees with a three-page suggested list of 57 perennials, 15 shrubs, two vines (one with many varieties) and 10 bulbs that love shade or will tolerate some shade. There are just too many to go into here. But, plants native to Maryland should do well in your yard. The red or yellow Columbine, native Ginger (leaves not shiny), white Turtlehead, fringed Bleeding Hearts and white and blue Iris cristata (ground cover) are among plants native to our area.
You may have a source for native plants, but if not, you can purchase them at Howard County's GreenFest, Saturday, April 18, rain or shine, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., at Howard County Community College. Most of the activities are held indoors, but I have found native plants for sale outside on the Quad.
Another source of native plants is the Howard County Master Gardeners' plant sale, Friday, May 8, and Saturday, May 9, at Whipps Cemetery, 3651 St. John's Lane, in Ellicott City. This is an annual fundraiser for the Whipps Garden Cemetery, considered a hidden oasis in Ellicott City.
Ask a Master Gardener Plant Clinics is a program where MG volunteers provide information to home gardeners at the county libraries from April through September. Master Gardeners also look at samples of ailing plants to make a diagnosis, give recommendations, answer questions, and provide printed information on a variety of gardening subjects.
Howard County Master Gardeners is at 3300 North Ridge Road, Suite 240, Ellicott City, MD 21043. Call 410-313-1913 or go to the URL provided above. You can also find the current newsletter and calendar information there.
The next talk at Savage Branch will be "Trees, Wonderful Trees," on Wednesday, March 4, from 7 to 8 p.m., at 9525 Durness Lane, in Laurel. Master Gardener Phyllis Yigdall will cover the many roles of trees in our lives and in our environment. Register with the library staff at 410-313-0760 or go to http://www.hclibrary.org.
Garden design sites are available online or you can purchase landscaping design software for your specific computer. Give it a try and see how it turns out. If you come up with a design you like, get out in your yard this spring and implement your plan.