An introduction to “Shady Characters” for your garden

Shady characters show up in shady places, and have been known to do shady things. Are you a gardener with a shady past? Well this is a speaker you won’t want to miss and plan for a shady future. Since moving to Sooke our yard is full sun exposure and those shady corners that offer a bit of relief from the heat, and the ability to grow really interesting shade loving plants are not an option. As it was in my past gardens there always seemed to be an area with dappled light or full shade, which turned into one of my favourite environments where so many plants could brighten up a dark, cool space. So for now I will embrace the sunshine and dream of all the nook and crannies a shade garden offers.

For September’s speaker the Sooke Garden Club has lined up Chris Jennings with the Vancouver Shade Garden Society. She brings with her a presentation around a compendium of shade plants, including annuals, ferns, grasses, ground covers, vines, perennials, shrubs and bushes. 

After moving from Ontario to Vancouver, Chris’s interests in gardening piqued after she went to a summer garden show discovering some magnificent fuchsia standards. She then joined up with the BC Fuchsia and Begonia Society and the next seven years learned all she could about these plants. In 2003 Chris decided to broaden her horizons and struck out on her own with a few other gardening friends to create the Vancouver Shade Garden Society that has around 60 members. The mission of the group is to explore and learn all about plants that can grow in full or partial shade as its not just ferns and hostas but so many other plants.

Chris Jennings will speak at our next club meeting (via Zoom) on September 22nd. You can also check out other upcoming events and join our Facebook page. Annual membership for the Sooke garden club is $15; new members are always welcome – join today!