I don’t know about you, but I dream of summer days spent on the porch with a good book and a glass of lemonade, while the sun shines down on the flowers around me.
I know, I know… with two toddlers the only books I’m reading involve trucks or body parts, and our porch, while cute, is firmly tucked in the shade for about 80% of the day. So those flowers? Not so much.
But I won’t be deterred! I think real foliage adds comfort to a space, and anchors it in a meaningful way. And while a good chunk of the flowers you often see in planters won’t thrive in a shady space, there are shade-tolerant options that just might work for you! So, don’t reach for the faux greens just yet.
Stick with me for our quick tips on How to Build a Shade-Tolerant Planter:
- Choose your planter. Focus on scale and shape to find planters that will best work with your space. Because we have long, wide stairs, I went with low square planters that don’t interrupt the lines of our porch. Some other reasons we love these Tierra Verde planters from Home Depot? They’re self-watering, they’re rated down to minus 40 degrees to make winter storage a breeze, and they’re made from recycled tires!
- Choose your plants. This can feel overwhelming for a shady space, but it doesn’t have to. To keep it simple, here are three fabulous shade-tolerant options that do thrive when planted in containers:
- Ferns. I love a beautiful fern for shady spaces. Tuck them safely away from midday sun and keep their soil damp, and these beauties are the epitome of elegance!
- Hydrangea. These blooming buds make a happy home in roomy containers, just make sure they’re given lots to drink. They’re happy be tucked in the afternoon shade if they’ve had a touch of morning sun.
- Begonia. These beauties will bloom all summer if they’re potted snug in well-drained soil and placed in dappled to full shade.
I chose beautiful ferns from Home Depot for our space for a couple of reasons. We’re gone a lot in the summer, up to the lake and visiting family, so with a self-watering planter I find these babes the easiest to keep looking lush and healthy while we’re away. And secondly, I love the uniform look of bright green planters sans blooms!
- Pop them in the planter. Grab a bag of potting soil, your planter, your plant, a small spade and some gloves and you’re ready to roll. Start by dumping potting soil in the bottom of your planter. I add a base layer of soil, then remove the plant from its pot and place it on top of the soil to test the height. Ideally the plant will sit about an inch below the top of the planter. Once you’ve got enough soil in the base, set your plant on top, and hold with one hand while you add soil all around it to secure it in the planter. Water the planter to ensure the soil is moist, and taaa-daaa! All done!
Pro tip: I do my potting on a large tarp. It’s not necessary, but it’s a great way to contain soil spills and makes tidy up super-fast.
Note: The planters and ferns used in this post were provided by Home Depot, but the opinions, general love for things green, and tips are all me!
