Shading your heat sensitive plants can make a huge difference in survival and growth. Just as frost covers allow protection against the cold, shade cloth for plants can shelter your plantings through the high temperatures of summer.
Artificial shade comes in many forms. We’ve used window screening, bamboo, old bed sheets, and plastic bird netting. These work okay but look a bit trashy and it’s hard to see how much sunlight is being shaded.
Specifically designed shade materials have worked best and can be used season after season. They also come in various gradients of shade from 30-90% (similar to SPF factors on sun screens). We like the 40% shade factor.
GARDEN SNIPPET – Shade Cloth:
Shade cloth works best for protecting sensitive plants and is reusable.
Shade Cloth for Plants Over Palette Frame on Bamboo Poles
Shade Cloth Over PVC Pipe Creates a Shade Tunnel
We simply swap out our white plant covers and place the black shade covers for plants over the same hoops and structures used to the frost covers.
Natural Shade Under Trees
Use any naturally shady areas in your garden. They can be havens for vegetables to plant in fall.
Plant beside taller growers like okra, sunflowers, and trellised veggies. Tree shade (high and low) can also provide protection.
I’m LeAura Alderson, a garden, herb and plant enthusiast with a passion for discovering the many edible and medicinal benefits of the plants all around us, including the weeds! I’m a writer, editor and media publisher for our family of websites.
While I was certified in fitness and life coaching, I am NOT a health practitioner. However, I’m a lifelong health enthusiast, with a keen interest in healthy, organic foods and making home remedies and the content we share is from our own experience and usage as well as that extracted from scientific research so that you can explore further on your own.
Always seek the advice and guidance of your health practitioners first and foremost.
As a family we’re steadily expanding our gardening, experimentation and knowledge around all things gardening, edible landscaping, fresh organic foods and self sustainability with farming in our future. I also own and manage iCreateDaily.com, a site all about transformation through creation, and the power of positivity, optimism and mindset.