Not every yard gets full sun—but that doesn’t mean it can’t be beautiful. If your outdoor space gets just a few hours of sunlight a day, the YardSmart “Design for Partial Sun” garden bed is the perfect solution. Created by the City of Calgary in partnership with the Calgary Horticultural Society, this garden is full of hardy, low-maintenance plants that thrive in tricky sun conditions and add colour from spring to fall.
Partial-sun gardens can be tough, especially when surrounded by fences or walls that intensify midday heat. But this design features resilient, drought-tolerant plants like globe thistle, peonies, catmint, and red sedum that can handle it all. Prairie crocus blooms in early spring, while bold golds, reds, and purples take over in summer and fall, drawing in bees and butterflies.
Getting started is easy. Remove your existing lawn using one of three methods (smother, flip, or top with compost), then follow the simple steps to lay out, plant, and mulch your new garden. Water regularly for the first couple of years—about 2.5 cm per week for perennials and slightly more for shrubs. After that, your garden will only need watering during extended dry spells.
Keep the soil covered with mulch, divide fast-growing plants every few years, and leave perennial growth intact over the winter to protect beneficial insects and catch snow. Come spring, your garden will bounce back beautifully.
Best of all, a YardSmart garden supports Calgary’s sustainability goals by using less water, reducing runoff, and helping the city adapt to climate change.
Learn more and get started at calgary.ca/YardSmart. Your partial-sun paradise is just a few steps away!