3 Ways to Choose Vegetables for a Shade Garden (2024)

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Co-authored byLauren Kurtz

Last Updated: October 27, 2020

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   Go for leafy greens like arugula, spinach, kale, and lettuce. These leafy greens do well in light to partial shade. They may not grow to full height or have large, fat leaves, but they will still taste good. Often, leafy greens grown in the shade have a less bitter taste.^[1]

   • Other leafy greens like chard and mustard greens also do well in light to partial shade.
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   Choose root vegetables like beets, radishes, and potatoes. Root vegetables often flourish in partial shade, as they do not require a lot of direct sunlight to grow well. In addition to beets, radishes, and potatoes, root vegetables like turnips, carrots, and parsnips also do well in light to partial shade.

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   Try vegetables like broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, and celery. These vegetables do well in light to partial shade. You can also try vegetables like rutabagas, sorrel, watercress, and Brussels sprouts in a garden with partial to light shade. They are all cruciferous vegetables.^[2]

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   Go for endives, garlic, and peas. These vegetables flourish in the shade, as they do not require direct sunlight to grow well.

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   Pick leafy herbs like basil, mint, and parsley. Certain herbs can flourish in light to partial shade, particularly leafy herbs like basil, mint, and parsley. Herbs that grow in the shade tend to have a less bitter taste and a longer growing period, meaning you will have access to these herbs for longer throughout the year.^[3]

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   Go for chives, rosemary, and lemon balm. These herbs do well in light to partial shade. You can grow them in pots in the shade and move them to sunny areas periodically if they start to wilt.^[4]

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   Try herbs like horseradish, garden cress, and valerian. These herbs can handle the shade. You can also try growing lesser known herbs like angelica, chervil, costmary, lovage, sweet flag, and sweet woodruff.

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   Grow catnip in the shade. If you have a cat at home and are looking for a cheap, healthy treat for your cat, try growing catnip in the shade. Catnip is easy to grow and maintain in a backyard garden with light to partial shade.^[5]

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   Start crops indoors and then move them outdoors. To encourage good growth, start crops indoors in planters and then move them outdoors once they have germinated and had a few weeks to mature. This will help the seeds germinate quickly and make growing the crops outdoors in the shade less painstaking.

   • You may also want to keep certain crops in planters so you can move them to sunnier areas in your garden later. Leafy herbs like basil or leafy greens like kale may do better in planters so they can be moved if need be.
   • Keeping certain plants in pots can also help you grow plants in areas with a lot of tree roots, which commonly cause problems in shade gardens.
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   Arrange the garden by shade-tolerance. If you have an existing garden and want to plant vegetables in shadier areas, organize them by shade-tolerance. Put vegetables that need direct sunlight in the sunny spots and then plant vegetables and herbs that do well in partial to light shade in these spots in your garden. This way, your garden is organized based on what will grow best in sunlight and in the shade.^[6]

   • Do not try to plant vegetables or herbs that require full sunlight in shady spots, as they will not grow well.
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   Paint nearby walls and fences white. To attract more light in shady spots in your garden, you can try painting nearby walls and fences white. This will help to reflect sunlight on the garden on hot, sunny days.^[7]

   • Have light colored paving on driveways or sidewalks next to the garden can also help to reflect sunlight onto the garden’s shadier spots.
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   Move crops into the sun if they start to wilt. If you notice certain vegetables or herbs starting to wilt in the shade or if they do not appear to be growing at all, try moving them to a sunnier spot. You can try replanting them or move them in planters to a spot with direct sunlight in your garden.

   • Most shade tolerant vegetables and herbs will do well in the shade and do not need to be moved. But if you notice certain crops are not doing well, you can try exposing them to sunlight to get them to flourish.

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