Plants for North-Facing Gardens and Balconies: What Grows Best in Low Light
North-facing gardens and balconies get gentle, indirect light for most of the day. While this rules out sun-lovers, it opens the door to a different palette of cool, calming plants for shade that thrive in UK conditions.
North-facing spaces reward calm, textural planting. With the right shade loving plants, they become some of the most atmospheric areas in any garden.
Best Plants for North-Facing Borders
Choose plants that prefer cool roots and consistent moisture:
- ferns
- astrantia
- pulmonaria
- brunnera
- foxgloves
- hellebores
- hardy geraniums
These build a rich, layered border with interest from early spring to late autumn.
Best Plants for North-Facing Balconies and Containers
Pots in shade warm slowly and don’t dry out as fast. Ideal choices include:
- heuchera
- ivy
- small grasses
- mint, chives and parsley
- dwarf foxgloves
- compact ferns
Choose light-coloured or ceramic pots to brighten the space.
Planting Tips for North-Facing Spaces
- Improve the compost with organic matter
- Feed lightly through summer
- Group pots at different heights for depth
- Use foliage contrasts to reflect light
- Add white or pale flowers to lift darker corners
Ideas for Adding Colour in Shade
Plants with silver, chartreuse or variegated leaves brighten low-light areas instantly. Plants you could try to add colour in shade gardens:
- lamium
- epimedium
- tellima grandiflora
- hakonechloa
- variegated hostas
- tiarella
- brunnera ‘Jack Frost’
Long-Term Care
Shade loving plants still need:
- consistent moisture in their first year
- a spring mulch to improve soil
- light trimming to keep their shape
- occasional division every few years to keep borders fresh
