We have small area up against the side of our house for a second small garden. It only gets about 2 hours of sun in the AM. Will any fruits or vegetables grow there?

I was thinking lettuce or other leaves, but is that two hours of direct sun with more time indirectly lighted, or two hours of not much light at all? What is growing there now? I have seen people use reflectors to increase the amount of light in an area.

yep...more info first...

and do you have hot or cold summers?

Hot, humid summers. It is pretty much shade. But the area is open and the shade is from the house.

Maybe it gets 3 hours sun in the early AM, maybe 2...I don't know. I never timed it. But the sun time is low in that area. I can check it out more accurately this weekend. Some bushes used to be there but I pulled them out ages ago. Nothing but some dirt and some weeds now.

yep....in that case try something that likes it a little cooler....like lettuce, or other leaf crops (spinach, kale, etc.)

When it gets too hot even for that... then... uhm.... I would try growing just like 4 carrots.... I think they might make it with the lower light.... but I am not sure.

I think strawberries like shade when you live with summers like that (but ask someone with a similar climate first).

There are lots of flowers you could stick in there though.

You could always put mint in there if it is a contained bed...and it has enough water. Then at least you would have an edible.

Leafies would be your best bet, I think. Spinach, arugula, parsley and chard would be OK. You might be able to do beets, turnips and carrots as Alaskan suggested. Leeks too, maybe.

If it's shaded by the house my guess is that it's dark shade, not bright shade like you might get under a tree?

Leafies would be your best bet, I think. Spinach, arugula, parsley and chard would be OK. You might be able to do beets, turnips and carrots as Alaskan suggested. Leeks too, maybe.



Thanks for the suggestion.

I timed the sun coverage today. The start time is about 9 am to right around 1PM. Then the house roof starts to cast a shadow on 60% of the bed and increases to 100% shade from there. (Bed is about 5 feet wide.)

Now, the sun must not be real strong when it is that early in the AM, but it does better than I originally thought, getting about 4 hours of early morning sun.

Would tomatoes do OK there?

What about apple, pear or peach trees?

I have had success with cucumbers in the shade, as well as kolrabi and turnips

I have a simular problem and have mainly grown spinach, lettuce and beets. I tried brocolli and cauliflower but they did not work out (not sure if it was the shadeor not, I get 3-4 hours of sunlight). I am trying peas tis year.

Stawberries should do beautifully. Mine are starting to green up though they are in shade almost all winter and covered with a hard snow/ice cap. They will fruit in shade.

Maggie

I got the exact sun times today and updated my earlier post to reflect the right numbers. Sun time the garden would get may change over the summer sun direction?