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Re: [SHADEGARDENS] Please Welcome a New Member

At 09:11 PM 1/26/98 -0600, you wrote:
>
>I'd be happy to hear any recommendations for additions. Also would like to
>know what spring bulbs could be naturalized in a wooded area.
>
>Sandy Fry
>

Hi, Sandy.  Both squill and trout lilies do very well in clay soil and
light to moderate shade.  You might try hemerocallis fulva to hold your
bank.  They won't bloom in too much shade, but they really get a root
system going.  I have read that the beach at Long Island or somewhere in
New York was originally stabilized by using poison ivy to hold the shore,
and it is supposed to be the best for controlling erosion, but who really
wants it.  I would throw away that un-wild ivy; it will eventually overtake
everything and squeeze out your wildflowers.
For butterflies, try Vernonia altissima; it makes other so-called butterfly
plants look lame.  It will get to only about 18" in height in the shade and
clay soil (6 or 7' in sun and garden loam), but it is beautiful and wild
nonetheless, and in the second or third season, you will be mesmerized by
the cloud of butterflies once migration starts.

Good luck, and welcome!


Sheila Smith
mikecook@pipeline.com
Z 5/6
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