Customer Reviews

A Garden in the Shade

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With hundreds of books on the market, how can one choose which one will prove most informative about gardening in the shade? For my money, George Schenk's book THE COMPLETE SHADE GARDENER is the best buy, but Schenk's book has few colorful photgraphs and most folks are drawn to pretty images.

A GARDEN IN THE SHADE by Harriet Cramer is a nice introduction to the subject. Although Cramer provides some interesting tidbits about raising plants in adverse circumstances (most plants like some sunlight) there is much she leaves out, which might be just as well for the new gardener. Cramer's book seems to be geared toward the large garden, one where the gardener has enough space to plant a thousand bulbs under a grove of trees. Some people have this much space, but they are just the sort to hire a gardener and not need the book to begin with. On the other hand, the book contains lovely photos, so one can point to a picture and say to the hired gardener "This is what I would like!"

Although Cramer discusses "understory" plants--bushes, perennials, annuals, ferns, etc. she does not devote much space to the "overstory." One strength of Schenk's book is that he actually does classify trees by their willingness to accomdate plants at their feet. Some trees are inhospitable--maples for example, but few books on shade gardening point out that you might as well slam your head on the garden gate if you plan to build a garden in the shade and have no idea what sorts of trees are casting the shade.

Gardeners soon discover that "shade gardening" means spring flowering, and sure enough, most of the photos in Cramer's book were taken in spring when the leaves were off the trees. The rest of the year, you'll be attempting to grow non-flowering plants that can live in the dark. There are a few plants that will produce a bloom or two in the shade--after the leaves appear--but they are few and far between. If you shade garden, think green.

Schenk's book is for the intimate garden, one on a small parcel of land. He also devotes a good deal of space to plants--about 200 pages. Cramer's book contains many fewer pages on plants, and those she shows mostly do well in her Pennsylvania garden.

A GARDEN IN THE SHADE by Harriet Cramer is great introductory resource to gardening in the shade. The gardener, struggling with what to do with all their shady spaces, especially the larger gardens or one with GROWING SHADEY SPACES will enjoy this collection.

The photographs are plentifull and beautiful with lots of colorful plants to plan a beautiful garden, especially for the more Northern Regions (I live in Texas) which may have a much shorter growing season. Many plants are not stunning because of their flowering pattern- but the color of the foliage is a key factor to planning the color patterns for day to day viewing. This is not a book I would like to part with- as shade seems to be the fastest growing area of my garden!

With hundreds of books on the market, how can one choose which one will prove most informative about gardening in the shade? For my money, George Schenk's THE COMPLETE SHADE GARDENER is the best buy, but Shenk's book has mostly black and white photos with a few colorful photographs.

A GARDEN IN THE SHADE by Harriet Cramer is a nice introduction to the subject of shade gardening and it is filled with pretty photos. Cramer provides some interesting tidbits about raising plants in adverse circumstances (most flowering plants like sunlight), but there is much she omits, which might be just as well for the new gardener. Cramer's book seems to be geared toward the large garden, one with enough space to plant a drift of a thousand bluebells in a grove of trees. Some gardeners have this much space to work with, but they are likely to hire a professional gardener and not resort to a "how-to" book like Schenk's. Cramer's book contains lovely photos that can be used to inform the hired hand.

Although Cramer discusses "understory" plants--bushes, prennials, annuals, ferns, etc. she does not address the "overstory" plants. One strength of Schenk's book is his discussion of the overstory, the plants (trees) that make the shade. Some trees are inhospitable towards other plants -- Maples for example. You might as well slam your head on the garden gate if you intend to build a shade garden and have no idea of the nature of your shade trees.

Gardeners soon discover that shade gardening means gardening with spring blooming plants, and sure enough, most of the plants in Cramer's photos were taken in spring when the leaves are missing from the trees. There are few flowering plants that like shade of summer, so think green if you intend to garden in the shade.

Shenk's book is for the intimate garden, one on a small parcel of land. He devotes a good deal of space to plants--about 200 pages. Cramer's book contains some discussion of plants, but her plants are mostly suited to her Pennsylvania garden.

With hundreds of books on the market, how can one choose which one will prove most informative about gardening in the shade? For my money, George Schenk's book THE COMPLETE SHADE GARDENER is the best buy, but Schenk's book has few colorful photgraphs and most folks are drawn to pretty images.

A GARDEN IN THE SHADE by Harriet Cramer is a nice introduction to the subject. Although Cramer provides some interesting tidbits about raising plants in adverse circumstances (most plants like some sunlight) there is much she leaves out, which might be just as well for the new gardener. Cramer's book seems to be geared toward the large garden, one where the gardener has enough space to plant a thousand bulbs under a grove of trees. Some people have this much space, but they are just the sort to hire a gardener and not need the book to begin with. On the other hand, the book contains lovely photos, so one can point to a picture and say to the hired gardener "This is what I would like!"

Although Cramer discusses "understory" plants--bushes, perennials, annuals, ferns, etc. she does not devote much space to the "overstory." One strength of Schenk's book is that he actually does classify trees by their willingness to accomdate plants at their feet. Some trees are inhospitable--maples for example, but few books on shade gardening point out that you might as well slam your head on the garden gate if you plan to build a garden in the shade and have no idea what sorts of trees are casting the shade.

Gardeners soon discover that "shade gardening" means spring flowering, and sure enough, most of the photos in Cramer's book were taken in spring when the leaves were off the trees. The rest of the year, you'll be attempting to grow non-flowering plants that can live in the dark. There are a few plants that will produce a bloom or two in the shade--after the leaves appear--but they are few and far between. If you shade garden, think green.

Schenk's book is for the intimate garden, one on a small parcel of land. He also devotes a good deal of space to plants--about 200 pages. Cramer's book contains many fewer pages on plants, and those she shows mostly do well in her Pennsylvania garden.

With hundreds of books on the market, how can one choose which one will prove most informative about gardening in the shade? For my money, George Schenk's book THE COMPLETE SHADE GARDENER is the best buy, but Schenk's book has few colorful photgraphs and most folks are drawn to pretty images.

A GARDEN IN THE SHADE by Harriet Cramer is a nice introduction to the subject. Although Cramer provides some interesting tidbits about raising plants in adverse circumstances (most plants like some sunlight) there is much she leaves out, which might be just as well for the new gardener. Cramer's book seems to be geared toward the large garden, one where the gardener has enough space to plant a thousand bulbs under a grove of trees. Some people have this much space, but they are just the sort to hire a gardener and not need the book to begin with. On the other hand, the book contains lovely photos, so one can point to a picture and say to the hired gardener "This is what I would like!"

Although Cramer discusses "understory" plants--bushes, perennials, annuals, ferns, etc. she does not devote much space to the "overstory." One strength of Schenk's book is that he actually does classify trees by their willingness to accomdate plants at their feet. Some trees are inhospitable--maples for example, but few books on shade gardening point out that you might as well slam your head on the garden gate if you plan to build a garden in the shade and have no idea what sorts of trees are casting the shade.

Gardeners soon discover that "shade gardening" means spring flowering, and sure enough, most of the photos in Cramer's book were taken in spring when the leaves were off the trees. The rest of the year, you'll be attempting to grow non-flowering plants that can live in the dark. There are a few plants that will produce a bloom or two in the shade--after the leaves appear--but they are few and far between. If you shade garden, think green.

Schenk's book is for the intimate garden, one on a small parcel of land. He also devotes a good deal of space to plants--about 200 pages. Cramer's book contains many fewer pages on plants, and those she shows mostly do well in her Pennsylvania garden.