XP: Need help with shade plant for front yard PIP

queenbone

This is my horrible rr tie front retaining wall.  We are going to replace it next summer with a proper stamped concrete wall.  There is a crab apple tree in the parking strip, a lilac and weeping cherry in our yard and kiwi plants growing along the fence which all form such a canopy that the roses are not getting enough sun and are not thriving no matter how much I feed or prune them.  So I want to remove and transplant all the roses this fall. You can see that we have ferns volunteering in there.  I was thinking that I would grow hostas, ferns, and trillium in this shade bed.  However my DH is afraid to get rid of the roses.  He like the thorns because he thinks it deters our homeless neighbors from sleeping there.  We do get people stoping to smoke on our steps because they can't walk two whole blocks from the bar to their car without stopping for a smoke. But I can't imagine someone sleeping there even though there is a fence that blocks the view from the house.  Do you think he is right and we need thorny, prickly shrubs there?  And if so, what can you recommend that is shade tolerant? 

TIA!

kylara111

Honestly, I think your plan would be more of a deterrent than the roses.  The hostas and ferns would fill the space keeping people out.  Right now, the roses aren't doing that.  I think it could look really lush and beautiful with what you have planned.

laddiebug

I'm also on the your-idea-is-great train. If he really wants a spiney shrub, try Berberis thunbergii 'Atropurpurea'. It's the purple-leaved barberry. Gorgeous fall color.

queenbone

ooh la la, thank you, ladies!

~NB~

If the criteria are spiny and shade tolerant, I'd use a dwarf variety of Chinese Holly (Ilex cornuta) or a Mahonia. Although neither is a perfect match for a shady site, they're more shade tolerant than Barberry and less susceptible to root rot. I wouldn't use Barberry (Berberis) unless it was in full sun and lean soil; judging by the species growing there now, the conditions are less than ideal for Burberis thunbergii. A purple-leafed variety ('Atropurpurea') would revert to green leafed in partial shade.

I'd agree that you'd do better to keep this area as a shade garden, and keep the lovely ferns.

book_slut

Barberry are invasive, at least where I live. And after having ripped out two of them, I wouldn't recommend them to anyone.

They're definitely thorny but like everyone else, I think your plan is better.  A nice shade garden that thrives will fill in the space nicely.

laddiebug

book_slut:

Barberry are invasive, at least where I live. And after having ripped out two of them, I wouldn't recommend them to anyone.

They're definitely thorny but like everyone else, I think your plan is better.  A nice shade garden that thrives will fill in the space nicely.

Plants can be invasive in some places and noninvasive in others. Barberry is not invasive across the board.