How to Make The Most of a North-Facing Garden

Wed, Mar 27, 2024 23:34 CET

There's no doubt that the best part of your garden is the part where the sun comes beaming down. While most gardens have plenty on offer to create an enjoyable space, no garden is completely perfect. One of the most common complaints amongst garden owners is that there simply isn't enough light coming into the space.

A fountain in a garden

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If you're feeling down about the limited sunshine in your garden and want to find ways to rectify it, we've got some tips for you. In this article, gardening expert Fiona Jenkins at MyJobQuote.co.uk goes over some information about how to make the most of your garden when there is limited sunshine available and the best ways to brighten up your garden space. So, if you want to enjoy your garden this summer as best you can, read on for everything you need to know.

The Differences Between North/East/South/West Facing Gardens

The direction that your garden faces will determine how much sunlight flows into the space and at which times of the day the sunshine is available in the space. The most popular garden is a south-facing garden. Most estate agents and letting agents alike will boast about a property's south-facing garden because this is the type of garden that gets the most sun throughout the course of a day.

Below is an overview of what the sun levels are like in gardens facing different directions:

North-facing gardens receive the least amount of sunlight and can be prone to becoming damp
South-facing gardens receive the most light throughout the day
East-facing gardens receive sunlight in the mornings
West-facing gardens receive sunlight in the late afternoons and evenings

How to Make The Most of The Little Sun You Get In The Garden

If you own a north-facing garden, you may be disappointed by the lack of sunlight that floods the space. The dullness of the outdoor space may put you off, and this may make you avoid spending time in the garden. However, there are some things you can do to help brighten up the space and bring it to life.

Take a look at the list below of some tips on how to make the most of the little amount of sun that you do get:

Remove Obstructions

If you are lucky enough to have some level of sunlight entering your garden, you want to ensure that you can make the most of it by removing any obstructions. This can include trees, structures, fences, bushes, and anything else that may be preventing the light from naturally pouring in.

Reflect The Light

One of the best tricks to add more light into your space is to find ways to reflect the sunlight. A good example is adding a pond to your garden. The water from the pond will reflect light out into your garden. If you would prefer a cheaper option or don't have the space for a pond, consider adding mirrors to outbuildings or using mirrors as decorative elements around the garden to reflect light.

Place Your Furniture in The Sunniest Spot

If you have an outdoor seating area, you want to think carefully about where this is placed so you can enjoy it to its full potential. Examine your garden and determine where the sun is at the times when you want to use your garden the most. Once you've found the spot, consider placing a patio or decking area in that part of the garden so that you can create a furniture space that's great for relaxing or entertaining.

Use The Shaded Space For a Children’s Play Area

You shouldn't overlook the shaded parts of your garden. These areas offer the best levels of protection from dangerous UV rays, making them the perfect spaces for children and pets to enjoy the garden. Take advantage of your garden's shaded parts by creating fun things for the children, such as a sandpit or a swing and slide set.

The Best Accessories To Make a Shaded Garden Brighter

If you have a shaded garden, don’t despair! There are plenty of accessories available to help you increase the light in the space and improve your garden’s appearance.

Below is a list of the best accessories to make your shaded garden brighter:

Lighting Features

Outdoor lighting is great for not only adding some extra light to the garden but can also highlight interesting features and provide the landscape with some added beauty and security.

There are many different options for outdoor lighting, including fairy lights, lanterns, downlighting, spotlights, and more.

Bird Baths

Bird baths are a beautiful additional feature for your garden. The water in the bird bath can help to reflect the available sunlight out into your garden, similar to the way a pond would. Plus, bird baths help to encourage wildlife, making your garden all that more beautiful and inviting.

Water Fountains

Similar to bird baths and ponds, water fountains can also help to reflect the sunlight out into the garden. In addition to the reflection of sunlight, water fountains also produce beautiful water trickling sounds, which can make the environment seem very serene and relaxing.

Chimes

Chimes are also a great way to reflect light into your garden. If you choose chimes with reflective features such as mirrored or glass designs, these can help to reflect the sun into your garden, even in the smallest of ways; every little helps. Chimes also produce a relaxing sound, adding to the chilled atmosphere.

Mirrors

Mirrors are one of the best ways in which you can reflect the sunlight into your garden. The more mirrors you place around, the brighter your garden will appear. Consider adding mirrored decorative items to your outbuildings, fences, and furniture.

How to Brighten Your Garden Space Without Cutting Trees/Foliage

There are several additional ways in which you can increase the brightness of your garden without the need to cut down any trees or foliage. While cutting trees and foliage is one of the best ways to add more light to your garden, many people enjoy the appearance of these plants, so they would prefer not to trim them down.

Below is a list of the best ways to brighten your garden space without having to compromise your tress or foliage:

Paint the Walls and Fences White

If you have walls or fences available in your garden, one of the best things you can do with these is to paint them white. This is a very easy thing to do and a simple way to brighten your garden space.

White surfaces can help to reflect and diffuse light in many different directions. This benefits any nearby plants and is a great way to instantly brighten your garden.

Choose The Hard Landscaping Materials Carefully

The colour of your patios and paving is something that you should think about if your garden is quite dull as it is. Choose warm, pale colours rather than dark colours like grey or slate tiles.

Darker colours won’t reflect as much light and can look quite dull and depressing in gardens with limited sunlight.

Highlight The Garden With Plants

You can brighten up a shaded garden quite easily with the help of some white flowers and variegated foliage.

Not only will this create the illusion of more light, but as the sun starts to set, the white will begin to really stand out, creating some added beauty to your garden space.

Add a Water Feature

A water feature such as a pond or fountain is a great way to spread light around your outdoor space. Water ripples and flows, reflecting light in many different ways.

A well-positioned and well-presented water feature can be a wonderful addition to your garden. You may even choose to use this as a focal point for your outdoor space.

Add Some Mirrored Items

As mentioned earlier, mirrors are a great way to reflect sunlight into your garden. However, mirrors are also a great way to give the illusion of a bigger garden space, and they can help reflect the sun's heat into your garden – perfect for those warm summer months.

Be careful not to use a magnifying mirror or to have multiple mirrors facing the same spot, as this could become a potential fire hazard in direct sunlight.

Install a Glass Sculpture

If you want another way to reflect sunlight around your garden, why not consider installing a glass sculpture? Consider incorporating some coloured glass in the mix, which will also provide some colour to your garden that will last throughout the year.

Where is the Best Place to Position Plants to Reduce Shade?

Many garden plants can shade out other flowers and plants if they’re not placed correctly.

To enhance the lighting for your plants, it's important to think about layering. Put the taller plants at the back of the bed and the smaller plants at the front of the bed. This will allow light to flow to the smaller plants, and it will give you the best possible view of all of the different plants.

If you want to avoid creating shade in your garden, you must examine where the sun is during the hours that you want to spend in the garden. If you are planning on planting taller plants or trees, you want to place these on the furthest side of your garden away from the sunlight to prevent shading.

Another good rule of thumb, if you're unsure of where to place your larger plants, is to keep them close to the home. Avoid placing them directly behind the home if you have a north-facing garden, as the plants won't get any sunlight and won't be able to thrive. However, keeping your larger plants closer to the home will prevent additional shade as the house is already shading those areas.

Where Should Furniture Be Placed to Enjoy The Sun For Longer?

The only real way to determine where to place your garden furniture to enjoy the sun is to spend a few days recording where the sun lies in your garden the most. For a few days on the run, take notes of where the sun is shining in your garden. Doing this every hour or so will give you the most accurate results.

Once you’ve got these notes, you’ll be able to review and determine where the sun is positioned for the longest time and where the sun is during the hours that you will most likely want to use your garden furniture.

From there, you can create a gorgeous garden furniture point where you can make the most of the sun and enjoy it for longer hours.

If you want to increase the hours that you can spend in the sun, consider opting for some smaller chairs or loungers that you can easily move around your garden throughout the day to get the most sun at any one time.

Final Thoughts

As you can see, there are many things you can do to make the most of a north-facing garden. From removing obstructions to placing your garden furniture in the right spot, all of these little tweaks can make a difference in how much sunlight bounces around your garden. So, if you’re hoping to make the most of the sun as the days get warmer, consider making some of these changes and see what a difference it makes.

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