Water-wise gardening conserves water and helps protect the environment. A xeriscape is a “dry scene” that uses very little water. A water-wise garden includes any style that is designed to conserve water.
Definitions
- “Tough” plants grow well in our climate and do not require frequent care. They are attractive in the home landscape and are generally available at local nurseries.
- “Water-wise” plants — once established in adequate soil — perform well with 1 inch of water per month or less. More water may be needed in 90-degree temperatures and when the plant is young.
- Full sun: six or more hours of direct sun.
- Light shade/part sun: about four hours of direct sun, a short-term opening to the sky or low sun early or late in the day.
- Filtered light or dappled shade: in irregular shadows of thin-leafed or tall, open trees. About half of the sky shows through the canopy.
- Open shade: fully exposed to sky but with little direct sun. This is often the environment on the north side of buildings.
- Deep shade: under dense-leafed trees. Less than one-fourth of the sky shows through the canopy.
- Trees that leaf out early: aspen, birch, willow, maple.
- Trees that leaf out later: oak, chestnut, sweet gum, beech, tupelo, catalpa, ash, elm.
Shrubs
| Plant name | Shade type | Resist deer? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pieris japonica — lily-of-the-valley shrub | Light, dappled | Very good | |
| Euonymus japonica and E. fortunei | Light, dappled | Fair | |
| Ilex crenata — Japanese holly | Light | Fair | |
| Deutzia | Light | Good | |
| Choisya ternate — Mexican orange | Light, dappled | Good | ‘Sundance' variety needs full sun |
| Skimmia | Open, deep, dappled | Very good | |
| Kerria japonica — Kerria rose | Light, open, dappled, deep | Very good | Fewer flowers with more shade |
| Myrica californica — Pacific wax myrtle | Light, open, dappled, deep | Very good | |
| Holodiscus — ocean spray | Light, dappled | Very good | |
| Gaultheria shallon — salal light | Open, dappled, deep | Very good | |
| Mahonia aquifolium — Oregon grape | Light, open, dappled, deep | Very good | |
| Mahonia x media — Japanese mahonia, ‘Charity’, ‘Arthur Menzies’, ‘Winter Sun’ | Light, dappled | Very good | |
| Mahonia eurybracteata ssp. ganpinensis ‘Soft Touch’ | Light, open, dappled | Very good | 2013 Plant of the Year at the Royal Horticultural Society's Chelsea Flower Show |
| Sarcococca — sweet box | Dappled, open, deep | Very good | Some morning sun OK |
| Ribes: R. sanguineum — red currant | Dappled, light, open | Good | |
| Garrya elliptica ‘James Roof — coast silk tassel | Light, dappled | Fair | G. fremontii—Fremont silk tassel is smaller, hardier |
| Hypericum — shrubby St. John’s wort | Light, dappled | ??? | |
| Rhamnus californica — coffeeberry | Light, dappled | Good | Needs decent drainage |
| Daphne odora, D. × transatlantica ‘Eternal Fragrance’ and ‘Summer Ice’ | Light, open, dappled | Very good | Like all daphne, needs very good drainage and nonacid, porous soil (pH of 7.0 for D. odora). Light shade only for ‘Eternal Fragrance’ and ‘Summer Ice’. |
| Symphoricarpos — snowberry, coralberry | Light, dappled | Good/fair | |
| Viburnums: V. tinus ‘Spring Bouquet’, V. davidii, V. opulus, V. acerifolium | Light, dappled | Good | V. davidii also does well in open shade |
| Elaeagnus × ebbingei ‘Gilt Edge’ —variegated silverberry | Light, open, dappled, deep | Very good | Needs decent drainage |
| Arctostaphylos densiflora ‘Howard McMinn’ | Light | Good | Needs excellent drainage, unamended soil, good air circulation |
| Calycanthus — Carolina allspice, sweetshrub | Light, dappled | Flowers larger on named hybrids of Chinese, floridus, others | |
| Buxus sempervirens — common boxwood | Light, open, dappled, deep | Very good | Try it unclipped for a dense but soft look |
| Osmanthus: O. delayvi, O. x burkwoodii — sweet olive; O. heterophyllus—false holly | Light, open, dappled, deep | Very good | Varied sizes and leaf types. Can be clipped. Most also like full sun. Sweet olive has spring bloom. False holly (heterophyllus) blooms in fall. |
| Ruscus aculeatum—butcher’s broom | Light, open, dappled, deep | ?? but prickly | What look like leaves are actually flattened shoots. Needs decent drainage. Most cultivated varieties are self-fruiting. |
Perennials
| Plant name | Shade type | Resist deer? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brunnera macrophylla — Siberian bugloss | Light, dappled, open | Good | |
| Acanthus mollis, A. spinosus — bear’s breeches | Light, dappled | Very good | A. spinosus is more compact. |
| Bergenia cordifolia, B. ciliata | Dappled, open, deep | Good | |
| Heuchera — coral bells | Light, dappled | Fair | |
| Digitalis — foxglove | Light, dappled | Fair | |
| Dicentra formosa — native bleeding heart | Light, open, dappled | Good | Goes dormant early without a bit of summer water. |
| Smilacina racemosa — false Solomon's seal | Light, open, dappled, deep | Good | Red berries. Drought tolerant in humus-rich soil. |
| Polystichum: P. munitum — sword fern; P. setiferum — soft shield/Alaskan ferns; P. acrostichoides — Christmas fern; P. tsus-simense — Korean Rock Fern | Light, open, deep, dappled | Very good | Evergreen. Drought-tolerant staples in the shade garden. |
| Dryopteris filix-mas — male fern | Light, open, deep, dappled | Very good | |
| Blechnum spicant — deer fern | Light, open, deep, dappled | Very good | |
| Athyrium — lady fern ‘Ghost’, ‘Japanese Painted’ | Dappled, open, deep | Very good | Not all lady ferns are drought tolerant. |
| Pulmonaria — lungwort | Light, open, dappled | Good | Good monthly water in summer. Cut back right after bloom to curb powdery mildew. |
| Hosta — plantain lily | Open, dappled, deep | No | More drought tolerant with good soil and more shade |
| Fuchsia — hardy fuchsia | Light, open, dappled | Fair | |
| Disporopsis pernya — evergreen Solomon’s seal | Light, open, deep, dappled | Very good | Well-behaved clumping habit |
| Hellebores: H. orientalis — Lenten rose; H. foetidus — stinking hellebore; H. argutifolius — Corsican hellebore; H. lividus — Majorcan hellebore | Light, open, dappled | Very good | H. niger, the Christmas rose, needs extra water. Corsican and Majorcan enjoy some sun. |
| Anemone japonica — Japanese anemone,; A. nemerosa — wood anemone | Light, open, dappled | Ate the flowers, not leaves | Withhold summer water to curb Japanese anemone spread. |
| Geranium macrorrhizum — big root geranium | Light, dappled | May eat flowers | |
| Lewisia cotyledon; L. rediviva — bitterroot | Light | Ate the flowers | Requires excellent drainage. |
| Trachystemon orientalis — Abraham, Isaac, Joseph or Oriental borage | Light, open, dappled | Good | Self-sowing not observed, unlike common borage. |
Groundcovers
| Plant name | Shade type | Resist deer? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Euphorbia robbiae | Light, open, dappled, deep | Very good | Good news—spreads well under trees, makes dense groundcover. Bad news— rhizomes spread too well, sap is irritant. |
| Cyclamen coum (winter bloom); C. hederifolium and C. mirabile (late summer) | Light, open, dappled, deep | Very good | Plants spread as ants move the seeds about. Seedlings are easy to control. |
| Corydalis lutea | Light, open, dappled, deep | Good | Plants self-sow significantly but are easy to pull. Gives three-season bloom. |
| Oxalis oregana — evergreen Oregon oxalis, redwood sorrel | Light, open, dappled, deep | Good | Spreads slowly but well under trees and rhododendrons. Three-season bloom. Deciduous variety considered invasive. |
| Vancouveria hexandra, V. chrysantha — inside-out flower | Open, deep, dappled | Very good | V. hexandra—white flowers. Deciduous V. chrysantha—yellow flowers. Evergreen Mahonia nervosa—longleaf |
| Oregon grape | Light, open, dappled, deep | Very good | Slow spreading |
| Liriope spicata — creeping lily turf | Light, open, dappled, deep | Very good | Moderate spreading |
| Ophiopogon japonica — mondo grass; O. planiscapus ‘Nigrescens’ — black mondo grass | Light, open, dappled, deep | Very good | Spreads better with occasional water. |
| Epimedium — bishop’s hat | Dappled, open | Good | Leaves look better with occasional water. Moderate spread rate. |
| Ceratostigma plumbaginoides — dwarf plumbago, deadwort | Light, dappled | Fair | Late to leaf out. Blooms better with occasional water. Moderate spread rate. |
| Waldsteinia ternata — barren strawberry | Light, dappled | Very good | A dense, evergreen weed-buster |
| Sarcococca hookerana var. humilis | Open, deep, dappled | Very good |
No afternoon sun. A dense, evergreen weed-buster. |
| Blechnum penna-marina — alpine water fern | Light, open, dappled | Very good | Occasional water helps it spread. Dense and evergreen. |
| Lamium maculatum — dead nettle | Open, deep, dappled | Good | The unnamed L. galeobdolon variety is quite invasive. 'Hermann's Pride' is the more contained variety of that type. Recommend L. maculatum, which has many calmer, named varieties with short stem length between leaves. Examples are ‘Ghost’, ‘Anne Greenway’, ‘Purple Dragon’, ‘White Nancy’, ‘Beacon Silver’, and ‘Pink Chablis’. |
| Cardamine trifolia —threeleaf cardamine | Light, dappled | Fair | Well behaved, evergreen |
| Asarum caudatum — Western wild ginger | Open, deep, dappled | Good |
Requires some patience. Needs a couple of years to establish before it will perform well. |
Extra tips:
This piece is part of the collection
A Water-wise Home Landscape: A Xeriscape
