Shade garden design ideas

Use these design tips to enjoy bold, beautiful colors in a shade garden that gets less sunlight in your yard. Mix and match shade-tolerant annuals, perennials and shrubs to make every inch of your yard look stunning.

1. Add a shade garden path

A surefire way to improve any shady backyard is to divide and conquer. Here, a paver walkway creates a sense of purpose and destination amid an abundance of hostas and other evergreens.

2. Plant low grass, especially in shady areas

Every lawn struggles if it doesn't get enough light. So instead of fighting fading grass in your yard, keep just a small patch of lawn and turn it into a landscape feature by surrounding it with a shade garden. Or leave the grass behind and use shade-loving ground covers like heechara and ajuka.

3. Make your shade garden a retreat

Turn an unused, shady spot in your yard into a cool and stylish summer oasis by adding a bench and some flowers. Creating a shady retreat gives you the perfect place to enjoy a glass of lemonade on hot, sunny days. Consider using salvaged landscaping materials to create a unique garden retreat structure—without investing in a significant makeover.

4. Use plants with different textures

Make a bold, dramatic statement in your shade garden by combining plants with different foliage textures and colors, even without flowers. An easy way to create texture combinations is by combining leaves with opposite characteristics. Here, golden meadow is a wonderful contrast to rue anemone, purple-leaved coral beads and large-leaved umbrella plants.

5. Plant bright colors

Yellow and gold shades shine in the shadows, so use them to lighten dull spots. Here, golden Japanese forest grass complements a hosta and golden leaf 'Chardonnay Pearls' Teutsia.

6. Plant shade-loving ground covers

To make your shade garden easier to maintain, take advantage of low-growing areas that tend to harbor weeds. As a bonus, many varieties offer an attractive carpet of color that will add a living path to your landscape. For example, this golden creeping jenny practically glows beneath plantings of blue hostas, purple coleus, and black mondo grass.

7. Add art to your shade garden

Mix in fun, quirky garden accents to give personality to your shade garden. A collection of silver spheres creates a focal point and adds light and beauty to this garden. Colorful orbs floating in the water garden add even more interest.

8. Choose interesting shade garden materials

Look past the plants and make hardscape elements the focal point of your shade garden. For example, a path mulched with dark wood chips is a wonderful landscape design element when surrounded by white bishop's weeds, ornamental grasses, or golden groundcovers. To help you get started, try creating a basic map of your yard.

9. Plant flowering shrubs

Perennials like hostas are always popular for shade gardens, but don't forget about the wide selection of flowering shrubs to pack your shady spots with color, texture and height. Here, a variety of azaleas and rhododendrons provide a big spring punch, and their lush foliage keeps the garden looking beautiful in winter.

10. Add a water feature

Install a stream or other water feature to add emotion to your shade garden with the sound of trickling water. A simple fountain and recirculation pump is all it takes to make magic in the garden.

11. Use architectural elements

Look for fun, unique items to fill your garden with interest. The garden features a series of round millstones, old barrel containers and various paving materials. They add a whimsical feel and are a great accent to plants.

12. Add shade-loving annuals

Choose annuals to create color in shady spots. Annuals are a great addition to a shade garden because they bloom all summer long. The best varieties include impatiens, balsam, dorania, brovalia, coleus and irisin.

13. Use edging plants

Edge your beds and borders with interesting plants and objects. Here, Japanese forest grass gives a wonderful color and texture to the border. Look for fun rustic architectural elements like terra-cotta pots or other objects that reflect your personality.