The marvellous thing about living in Whalley Range is all the magnificent mature trees - such a relief to turn down cool, shady Range Road, after a sweaty cycle home during the heatwave earlier this year.

The frustrating thing about living in Whalley Range is… all the magnificent mature trees (not to mention those pesky squirrels).

Shade. It can make for some tricky gardening decisions, and I am quickly working up my knowledge of the plants that work best in order to tackle my own garden.

We have a small walled flowerbed in our front garden. It is over-shadowed by the neighbours’ enormous beech tree. In addition to light, this tree is also competing with my shrubs for root space and water. As you can imagine, it’s not much of a competition.

After a year or two of complete neglect, including my total failure to water throughout aforementioned scorcher of a summer (not a good advert for a gardener, I do realise), I decided to take this little flowerbed in hand.

The beech tree, like the houses, has presumably been there since Samuel Brooks’ time, over 150 years ago. It is not going anywhere soon. Instead, it’s up to me to make sensible planting choices for the prevailing conditions.

I’ve gone for a Viburnum davidii, which likes shade, along with Heucheras (‘Plum Pudding’). The Heucheras pick out the beautiful red leaf petioles on the Viburnum really well.

Love ‘em or hate ‘em, I’ve also put in some Alchemilla mollis or Lady’s Mantle, which will grow anywhere! Hopefully the Verbena and Bergenias will perk up next year, if I’m more disciplined about watering them…

Let me know what shade-loving plants have worked well for you, and check back here in spring for a photo when the viburnum is in flower, and the bulbs are up. That is, assuming those pesky squirrels haven’t got to them first.

Coming next; Autumn leaves – and what to do with them.