When trying to establish a garden beneath trees you need to consider both the amount of shade and the soil. Deciduous trees are much easier to grow plants and flowers under than are pines or conifers.
Two things to consider before planting beneath trees.
The amount of shade is the first thing to consider, some trees provide dense shade, others a more dappled shade.In very deep shade your choice of plants is limited.
Soil quality is the second issue, many trees have lots of surface roots, this in itself makes planting difficult. So plants that that cope in these conditions are few and far between.
It can be tempting to build up the soil beneath trees to improve the soil, this can cause problems. Tree roots near the surface draw oxygen and water, increasing the soil level changes this. In general do not increase the soil level more than 5 cms.
The distance from the trunk of the tree also determines what you can plant. Close to the trunk the shade is usually the deepest and the soil the poorest. Further away you will get more light and better soil.
One plant that seems to thrive beneath trees is moss, so maybe a moss garden is the answer to the most difficult situations.
What to plant Under Trees – Our list of plants :
- Epimediums
- Clivia
- Daphne
- Hostas
- Trillium
- Ferns
- Mahonia
- Liriope muscri ‘Emerald Cascade’
- Arthropodium cirratum
- Plectranthus argentatus
- Bergenia
- Cyclamen
- Dicentra
- Polygonotum
- Cardiocrinum giganteum
- Galanthus – Deciduous trees only
- Daffodils – Deciduous trees only