Anyone else looking for plants for dry shade?

[XemaSab]

I'm looking to plant an area that gets late afternoon sun, and water maybe once every other week?

[Suich]

1. I'm in Seattle and

shasta daisys will grow anywhere!

[JDPriestly]

3. Is it ever really dry in Seattle? I'm serious.

I associate Seattle with rain.

I'm not sure that shasta daisies will do that will in dry areas of Southern California. Does anyone know about this?

[Suich]

5. We had 49 days without rain this summer,

which was 2 days short of the record! July, August and September are usually pretty dry but I don't water anything...back yard is native or drought-resistant, and it got pretty "crunchy" there this summer!

It's raining now and we're not supposed to see blue sky until Tuesday, so yeah, we get a lot of rain!

[XemaSab]

6. I planted Shasta daisies last spring and

they all died.

[XemaSab]

8. You would think they'd grow in Shasta County

[efhmc]

10. I only have luck with seeds which acclimate .

Bedding plants don't work for me. That was the only way I got alyssum and stock to grow here. Had a difficult time finding the seeds, but they reseeded and came back and were great.

[efhmc]

2. Turk's cap has been in a bed at the ranch (Tx) for 50+ years and gets very little

rain or other watering. It does die back in the winter. http://today.agrilife.org/2011/05/25/turks-cap-named-new-texas-superstar/ Do you want greenery or flower. There is an old lantana in the same bed. I think it is the carnival variety. Also dies back.

[JDPriestly]

4. Lantana or a flowering succulent? Those work for us.

[efhmc]

9. Succulent? Does it freeze there? Many succulent will die and not

come back. I used ice plant for 2 years, a pretty pink variety, but a hard freeze got it and it did not return. http://www.klru.org/ctg/plant/name/Ice_Plant/

[JDPriestly]

11. Rarely get a real freeze. Not enough to kill our succulents.

[efhmc]

14. Well, I would recommend that plant for dry weather. I was very sad when it

did not come back. It was large and pretty in that bed. I should have taken cuttings. Maybe next time,

[beac]

7. Aucuba?

http://www.finegardening.com/plantguide/aucuba-japonica-and-cvs-japanese-laurel.aspx

http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/factsheets/shrubs/aucuba_japonica.html



Super drought tolerant, many varieties and easy to propagate from cuttings.

[JDPriestly]

12. Now I know what that beautiful plant is called. Thanks.

[beac]

13. I learned it as Aucuba, though I think "Japanese Laurel" might be more common.

It really is a great plant. Very tolerant of abuse and can be grown as a houseplant as well. I have several rooted cuttings in water in opaque vases around my house too.

[kurtzapril4]

15. Check out native plant societies in your state.

Here's the Washington State Native Plant society:

http://www.wnps.org/

Native plants, once established, can cut down on water and fertiliser needs. They have also evolved to grow in the conditions you have, and they provide food/shelter for native wildlife, too. Just some thoughts.

[ColumbusLib]

16. In my garden...

...euphorbias are awesome in my dry, mostly shaded areas. They seem to need practically no water once they're established, and are beautiful. I have 3 euphorbias 'Tiny Tim' and 2 Amyg. Purpurea. They are unique-looking and beautiful plants- in the winter they get red/purple color. I highly recommend Larry Hodgson's book 'Making the Most of Shade' - great plant reccs and instructions on planting amid tree roots.

[Retrograde]

17. I'm also looking

I need something for an area that's shaded most of the day by an avocado tree, and gets rain only in the winter. And the soil's pretty poor as well.

[kurtzapril4]

18. Try some native plants.

That's what I did in some of the trouble areas in my yard, and they did great. Lest any one think I'm a native plant purist, I also plant exotics, too, as long as they're not "badly behaved," LOL. I wouldn't give up my irises for anything! Or my tree peony! Here's a link for the California Native Plant Society. If you want to try some natives, they should be able to help you out.

http://www.cnps.org/