Full Sun Gardens

Knowing which types of plant thrive best in shade or full sun is essential to a healthy garden. Most trees are very happy to soak up as much sunlight as is available. Cedars, pines, tamarack and many more all do very well.


Fruit trees, especially citrus, can take 8 hours or more of full, hot sun every day for months and bloom like crazy. But, flowers vary.

‘Full sun’ means 6 or more hours per day of direct sunlight. Since it’s direct, any energy not taken by the atmosphere is delivered right to the plant. That means plenty of energy for photosynthesis, producing very green leaves and ample flowering – provided the plant doesn’t get so much light it burns and it has sufficient water.

Foxgloves, for example, do well in partial shade, but they also thrive very well in full sun. Their tall stalks will be lined with flowers when the soil is warm and they get adequate water. A completely different looking plant, yarrow, also does very well in full sun. Resembling a fern, with small white flowers, they can take as much sun as they can get.

Since there’s so much sun available in such areas, it’s important to keep the soil at an appropriate level of moisture and well fed. Plants need a certain amount of nitrogen and phosphorous, which they can not get sometimes from the poor soils found in many places around the country. Keeping plants well supplied with nutrients, however, is easy even under very sunny conditions. For small, potted plants a small amount of liquid fertilizer is enough. How much depends on the plant and the pot, follow the directions. For moderate to large-sized gardens a few bags of inexpensive dry or moist fertilizer is a good idea. Manure based fertilizer works well for large gardens. It typically comes in 30lb to 50lb bags, and can simply be shaken over the soil right out of the bag or from a dispenser.

Keeping the ground moist, but not wet, at least every other day is important for most flowering plants. Cacti, of course, and other drought tolerant plants can go long periods on very little water. Their unique structures allow them to retain moisture internally, with very little loss through the leaf, much better than irises or pansies or foxgloves and other common flowering plants. Yarrow can tolerate low levels of water well, as does aloe and verbena.

Several types of vine are very drought tolerant, thriving on lots of sun and little water. Bougainvillea and wisteria are two examples. Many shrubs get all the water they need from the soil, provided you don’t live in the desert or where it’s too rocky or sandy. Those types of soil don’t retain water efficiently, which can be an advantage in some circumstances. Then, of course, citrus trees, walnuts, pines, tamarack and others will do very well in dry soil.

Most people tend to overwater their orange trees, for example, especially those in big pots. Pick the right kind of plant for your soil and amount of sun and you’re well on your way to a beautiful landscape.