Shaded Plants for Gardens and Greenhouse
All plants require some type of sunlight in order to survive. It could be that your plants are getting direct light, fluorescent light or only getting direct sunlight an hour or two a day, but the plants are at least getting some amount of sunlight every day. No plant can survive in total darkness. But how can you tell is an area is not bright enough for a plant?

Posted Thursday, April 6, 2006

If your plants have stems and leaves that are turning towards the light; towards a window or a door, that plant needs more light. If you turn your plant every few days the plant will not lean towards the light as much as it will have the adequate light exposure on all sides that it needs to survive. If you find that your plants are pale green in color and you know that they were a deep rich dark green before, your plants are not getting the amount of sunlight that they require. Plants need sunlight for photosynthesis. A dark green color is a symptom of photosynthesis.

If new leaves are forming on the plants, but they are lighter, paler, sometimes even a white color, the plant is not getting enough sunlight. If lower leaves on a plant turn yellow and fall off the plant, it is not getting enough light. Plants that are supposed to have flowers, and your plant never flowers- yes- your plants are not getting enough light. Without the proper sunlight and nutrients to support what the plant needs to produce flowers it will not flower.

What are some easy to grow plants that require little or small amounts of light?

Bar room plants which are also known as cast iron plants are a long and lanced leaf shaped plant. The leaves are a dark green color that require little light to survive. This is an easy to grow container plant for areas of the greenhouse that are in more of a shaded area. Hen and chicken ferns, which are also known as mother fern, are another type of plant that will require little light. Placed on the bottom shelf, on the flooring or behind other plants, this fern plant will continue to grow and thrive with little amounts of light. The roots from this plant are easily transplanted and will create new plants.

Creeping fig or climbing fig is another plant that requires lesser amounts of light than other plants. This is a fast growing and climbing plant that will fill areas of your greenhouse or sunroom where the light does not shine as brightly. There are no flowers that will appear on this plant.