Color in the Shadows

Virtually everyone loves a colorful sunlit flower garden where vivid phlox and stately delphiniums vie with smiling pansies and bright petunias for attention. The blossoms blend in a riot of color that seems to shout the praises of their Creator. But shaded gardens have something special about them too. They have a gentleness and charm that creates a feeling of intimacy and restfulness. They also sing God¹s praises, but in quieter, more subdued tones.

Both sunlight and shadow are representations of Christ. He is called the ³. . . Sun of Righteousness . . .² (Malachi 4:2), but He is also likened to ³. . . a shadow of a great rock in a weary land² (Isaiah 32:2). On a hot summer day, one of the most refreshing places is a shaded bed of ferns and hostas.

Although shaded gardens usually do not have the flamboyant colors of sunny garden borders, shaded areas are not just all greenery. Tuberous begonias grow in deep shade and display some of the most vibrant colors found in flowers. Deep blue gentians, bright yellow marsh marigolds, golden globe flowers, and rainbows of primroses all contribute cheery color to the shade garden, but it is the lovely, green foliage that provides the feeling of cool lushness.

My gardens have varying degrees of shade provided by a variety of trees, shrubs, and buildings. Each kind of plant has its own needs and must be placed where it will receive the right amount of light and shade. God has provided for the needs of all, and He has created flowers to grow almost every place on earth in a wide variety of climates.

Where there is solid shade all day long, the choice of plants that will grow well is limited. In such places I grow bleeding heart, ferns, hostas, and lily of the valley. In places that are shaded only part of the day, a much wider variety of plants will thrive. Lilies will bloom beautifully in intermittent shade providing vivid splashes of summer color.

Trying to grow plants in places unsuitable for them often results in disappointment. For several years I tried unsuccessfully to grow the lovely little pink and red saxifrage. Because I found wild saxifrages growing among the rocks on dry hillsides, I assumed that all saxifrages needed hot sunshine; therefore I planted them in the sunny border area. But they always died within a few months. Later, when I learned that saxifraga rosacea needed cool, moist shade, I planted them beside a bird bath, under a great Douglas fir tree. There, in their proper place, they grew and spread into a lovely ground cover.

God has also prepared a place for each of us where we can grow and develop according to His plan. ³Behold I send an Angel before you to . . . bring you into the place which I have prepared² (Exodus 23:20). Too often we try to fill a place that God never intended for us­a place we feel is more congenial or more important­but the result is unhappiness and sometimes failure.

Whether our place in God¹s work is great or small doesn¹t really matter. In the days of Israel the Lord laid down this principle­³. . . But as his part is who goes down to the battle, so shall his part be who stays by the supplies; they shall share alike² (1 Samuel 30:24). Christ could have done many things on this earth­things which would have won for Him the admiration of the world­but He chose to fill the place that His Father had appointed Him. His testimony near the end of His earthly life was, ³. . . I have finished the work which You have given Me to do² (John 17:4). God has also given us ³. . . to each his work, . . .² (Mark 13:34) that is just right according to His will.

Just as God¹s work has a wide variety of tasks, a wide variety of flowers is needed to make an esthetically pleasing garden. Great clumps of bright phlox bloom in my sunny garden while dainty violets bloom in shaded nooks under the trees. Each plant makes its own special contribution to the overall effect. Some species bloom early with their bright petals greeting the spring sunshine before the last patches of snow have melted. Other plants are late bloomers, and their rich colors often mingle with the first snowfall of the coming winter. A garden with only one kind of flower would lack interest and beauty.

Gardening under trees can be a challenge, and the kind of trees makes a big difference. Fortunately, most of ours are Douglas fir which do not deplete the surface soil of nutrients to any great extent. Many plants will grow well under them. I also have a garden shaded by large stands of white birch. Because the soil under them is a mass of surface feeder roots, it¹s challenging to grow anything there. These roots drink up moisture and nutrients faster than I can supply them.

I would have given up long ago on my birch shaded garden except that it is by our kitchen door in a very private, sheltered place, which we use as an outdoor living room in the summer. Through years of trial and error I have found a few ground covers that will survive there. But the real stars of that garden are the hostas! I cannot praise God¹s design for these plants too highly. They not only survive in the starved soil under the birches, but the hostas actually thrive there, making a beautiful show of foliage all summer long with their large, heart shaped leaves. This spot appears almost tropical at times. All hostas require is water and a little fertilizer, and even our cold, British Columbia winters do not harm them when they are dormant.

There are many kinds of hostas and all are delightful in their own way. The Francis Williams variety, with its great blue-green leaves, is a favorite of mine. I also grow several other varieties; some have plain leaves and some have variegated leaves, but all offer an air of elegance to the garden.

As a child I especially enjoyed some bright little red and yellow flowers that bloomed every spring in my mother¹s garden. I did not know then what they were, but now I know that they were just a common variety of primroses. I still grow them in my shade gardens, and they appear as fresh and charming now as they were fifty years ago. Now I grow other primula varieties as well. The first to bloom are called Wanda, which is a low plant and the denticulata variety has a tall flower stem with a round head of bright flowers on top­like a drumstick. These are followed by auricula and several other common kinds of primroses. The Japanese primroses are the last to bloom, and my all time favorite is the stunning Japanese star. By growing several different varieties of primroses I have them blooming in my garden for about three months every year.

One big blessing of gardening in the shadows is that weeding is not as much of a chore as it is in sunny gardens­partly because of the coolness and partly because weeds need more sunshine. So when the temperature is just too hot to do anything in the sunny garden, I enjoy working among the shadows in a secluded little flower bed under a tall tree. It reminds me of the promise, ³He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty² (Psalm 91:1). There, surrounded by refreshing greenery and delicate blossoms, I can share a little of what Adam must have felt as he walked in the garden with God³ in the cool of the day.²

Evelyn Sayler writes from Oliver, British Columbia, where she spends as much time as possible outdoors in her garden and elsewhere to observe the blessings God has provided in His handiwork.