Plants for Courtyards

Situation

• A courtyard garden offers unique opportunities and challenges. Protected on three or four sides by walls or buildings, a courtyard is a self-contained environment with its own growing conditions. A courtyard is usually shaded with limited sun exposure during the day. Protection from strong winds may lead to poor ventilation for the plants. Large areas of paved surface or brick walls both retain and reflect heat and light, proving a warm growing space but potentially drying out the soil. Gardeners must pay close attention to watering their plants, as the protected space may not receive enough rainfall.

Perennials

• Many foliage perennials, and some flowering ones, thrive in warm and shaded sites. Bellflower is a vigorous perennial that grows to 3 feet high and produces dark violet-blue bell-shaped flowers in the summer. The bright yellow, saucer-shaped flowers of the rose of Sharon bloom from mid-summer to early autumn, and the shrub has creeping roots that effectively suppress weeds. Epimedium grows to 12 inches tall and, as a young plant, has bronze-red leaves which mature to a dark glossy green. Some geranium cultivars are perennials. The hardy geranium produces clusters of white flowers with yellow centers in mid-spring, offsetting its shallowly lobed light green leaves.

Annuals

• Annuals grown in warm, shaded sites provide a burst of color throughout the growing season. Consider planting these flowers in containers that you move around your courtyard to take full advantage of the sun. For color, wax begonias add shades of pinks and reds that contrast with the blue flowers of lobelia. Nicotiana blooms provide shades of purple and a sweet fragrance, and fuschias offer bright pink flowers and medium-green leaves. The white blooms of sweet alyssum can be added to tone down these bright colors. Fill in with foliage plants such as coleus, which provides colorful leaves in shades ranging from lime green to bronze. Bring wildlife into your courtyard with the butterfly flower, Schizanthus, which attracts butterflies and birds.

Climbing

• Courtyard gardens are unique in that they have a great deal of vertical space that can be used for growing plants. Climbing plants that succeed in courtyards include Armand's clematis, which grows to 20 feet high. This plant produces large white flowers and needs a support to climb. English ivy is a fast-growing foliage plant. Some of its varieties have variegated green leaves with yellow or white splotches. Solanum seaforthiana, or Brazilian nightshade, can reach over 20 feet in height and blooms in the warm months. Its clusters of star-shaped flowers are white, purple or pink with prominent yellow centers, and its small red berries, produced in the fall, attract birds.