If Tolstoy had been writing about shade instead of unhappy families, he might have populated his novel with dappled shade cast by oaks, high shade under a deodar, transitional shade at the forest edge, deep shade within a redwood grove, seasonal shade next to a building.
Last month's column discussed large flowering shrubs that, with proper pruning, could be trained as small trees for dry sunny locations (bigberry and Dr. Hurd's manzanita) and also, with fewer blooms, in the dappled shade under a native deciduous oak (Ray Hartman ceanothus, mountain mahogany.redbud, toyon) or native evergreen oak (redbud, toyon). This month, let's focus on small trees for shadier or wetter locations.
Coast silk-tassel prefers the high or dappled dry shade under tall evergreen oaks or other trees. Most of the year it's a soigné evergreen backdrop – every leaf in place – but in late winter it's a show-stopper, clothed in foot-long catkins, especially the James Roof and Evie cultivars. Its dense rounded form usually stays under 12 feet high in gardens, but can reach 20 feet in the right location.
Sometimes the area next to a building can seem like forest-edge or high-shade conditions, until the sun's angle changes with the seasons and creates dramatically different lighting. Adaptable drought-tolerant plants that also tolerate some water for such locations are hollyleaf cherry, western elderberry, and lemonade berry and sugar bush, which all provide fruit for wildlife.
Hollyleaf cherry, with glossy evergreen foliage, can be 5 feet high in dry sunny locations or 30 feet with ample water in high shade. Western elderberry, 8 to 25 feet, is deciduous and sports flat-topped flower clusters in summer. Lemonade berry and sugar bush form dense 4- to 20-foot evergreens and can tolerate deep shade.
A rule of thumb: many plants that are drought-tolerant in part shade may need some water to look their best in sunnier locations.
Pacific wax myrtle, an evergreen with happy green foliage that prefers regular water but grows in sun to part shade, can reach 30 feet.
Vine maple can tolerate the dry shade under deciduous native oaks and the dense shade under conifers, but thrives in moist woodlands and at pondside. Its delicate leaf shape, graceful structure, red twigs, and vibrant fall color make it an ideal native choice for Japanese-style gardens. It grows slowly, reaching 4 to 20 feet.
Deciduous small trees are a particularly good choice under other trees because they let leaves from above fall to the ground, rather than caching a rat's-nest of leafdrop year-round, as evergreen hedges do.
California hazel grows along streams and favors the moist forest edge, so needs shade and regular water. Before it leafs out in early spring, catkins dangle from every branch. I like this graceful tree next to a path, where I can touch the soft leaves as I go by. Typically around 8 feet high, its size can range from 4 to 20 feet.
© 2006 Tanya Kucak