Love my north facing garden.

[Buxusmortus]

On here I often read about people who wouldn't dream of buying a house with a north facing back garden.

My house is on an exact north-south axis and in the winter there's no sun at all in the back garden nearest the house. In summer it gets much more sun as the sun is high and also from the west in the afternoon and evening. I've always loved it, can grow lots of different types of plants and I grow the real sun-lovers in my front garden.

But in our increasingly hot summers to have the back of the house and garden nearest the house in shade is a massive bonus, I can sit and eat outside without being roasted alive and don't need to be rigging up shades and parasols, yet I can be in full sun just a bit further down the garden if I choose.

I wonder if shadier gardens will become more of a selling point in the future.

We've got a north facing garden too and it's lovely. We've just sat on the patio under the brolley having breakfast and it's nice and shady, but we get a load of sunlight and warmth through the day in the rest of the garden.

We have a north facing back garden but it still gets plenty of sun at this time of year. I suppose it's probably more problematic if it's a very small garden.

I agree! I had real doubts about my north facing garden before I moved in (down to reading a lot of negative threads on here) and absolutely love it, especially now I have young kids. Almost always have decent sun during the summer (morning, daytime and evening) and decent shade too- which is great as I have little ones. It's not huge either. I just love throwing open my bifolds and just letting everyone potter in and out.

Me too! I had a south facing garden in last house and it was too hot to go outside as there wasn't a great deal of natural shade from trees.

In this garden which is quite long, my patio stays cool as the sun moves around it so there is always somewhere sunny to sit if you want. The bottom of the garden is very sunny most of the day.

I have loads of sun loving plants in the garden and they all do well including lavender which is a real heat lover.

I wasn't sure if I'd like the garden when I bought this house but I am a convert. As long as the garden is long and you aren't in constant shadow, it's lovely.

Our house faces east-west with the morning sun at the rear and evening sun at the front.
Means that you can sit on the patio in the morning sun (although it is too hot today!) and in the evening, the patio is shaded & cool.

Sun loving plants down the end of the garden and one side, shade loving plants on the other side.
Front garden is full of sun loving plants as it gets full sun from midday onwards.

Would actively avoid a house with a south facing garden unless it had lots of mature trees for shade (as did my parents house).

As someone with a fully south facing garden, I am v envious right now. It is lovely to have the benefit of any sunshine in winter though.

I agree my last house was north south facing the living room was at the back of the house so stayed lovely and cool and still had plenty of sun in the back garden.
this house has a south facing back garden and it’s just too hot! I have zero shade from trees or other houses and last week it was 30 degrees inside. It’s just too much

I love mine. We have a large patio which gets a fair amount of sun and there is a small bit of shade immediately outside the back door for when it is really hot. There’s a second patio further down that gets sun in the afternoon and evening. I spend hours out there and as I am fair skinned a south face garden is something I would actively avoid.

So far at the 2 year mark there isn’t anything I can’t grow. My new apple trees are doing well for their second year, my blueberries are ripening, kale, have had strawberries and raspberries. The French beans are doing amazingly considering I only planted them 2 weeks ago, the first courgette is coming, trying butternut squash and sweetcorn. Thinking of making a fernery at the back corner under the tree and wondering if I give hostas another go.

We were lucky to inherit an established garden with a fair flowering shrubs and ornamental plants and I am gradually adding more. Only issue is the soil needs organic stuff adding as very sandy in places. Fair amount of wild life, have seen a frog, slow worm, lots of ladybirds currently and a fair few birds when the sodding magpie doesn’t chase them off. There was a hedgehog before we moved in apparently but sadly no longer.

Me too! We are NNE facing so we beautiful shade in the back garden and the house stays cool.

We have quite an enclosed front garden too, which has a sunny wall where we grow our cucumbers and tomatoes - neighbours do the same!

I totally agree, I absolutely love mine. It’s the same axis as yours OP, I have shade available if I want it at anytime of day, it’s perfect. I grow almost any plant (hollyhocks are snail fodder here 🤬) and the house stays pleasantly cool in summer. I consider myself very lucky.

I am envious of someone with a garden full stop!

Doesn't a parasol offer shade? You don't need massive trees.

Completely fair point. It's a first world problem.

Our house faces West, so we get sun in the garden in the morning, and by lunchtime it's shady. Our garden looks fantastic, it's packed with flowers. I don't want to actively sit in the sun, and don't understand the fuss about south facing gardens.

Very envious , loved my north facing garden in my old house . Current house “should” be perfect as it’s south (slightly west) facing , but it’s impossible , plants fry , back of house bakes and currently impossible to sit out after 2

I love mine too, I need shade and I can grow plants I love like huge ferns.

Ours is east facing. It’s quite large though so we do get the sun at some point in the garden all day. When it’s not a heatwave I do love sitting on the decking watching the sun come up and having that light in my eyes (especially in winter) then the decking is in shade from about 4pm which can be welcome. If I want evening sun I go and sit down the bottom of the garden. I’m happy with it.

I can see why with these increasing temperatures that north facing gardens may become more appealing!

The person who built our house obviously knew about gardens and light. The sun is in the kitchen and breakfast room in the morning and moves around the house until it shines in through the living room and the dining room into the afternoon and evening. I didn’t really appreciate this until I lived here for a few years. I used to be envious of a south facing back garden but now on a hot day like today - not so much.

I recently moved from a south facing property which was horrendous in the summer, bedroom and lounge in full sun all day. A couple of years ago when we got the high 30’s it was absolutely horrific and it felt almost hard to breathe!

I’m now in a north facing property and my god, what a difference. It’s still hot but nothing like the sweltering, airless environment the last property was. I get a bit of evening sun which suits me fine. I think the way our climate is going, north facing properties will become more popular as pp said.

We bought ours a few years ago and the idea of mostly north facing garden was an attraction

My south facing garden and kitchen are boiling hot right now, I will admit

But this happens maybe 3 weeks a year. The rest of the time, especially in winter, I’m so grateful for the sun.

North facing but no neighbours so the only shade we have is a massive tree in the summer and a bit in the winter 😂 we are building a pergola !!!

I agree, we have a nice shady patio next to the house and the other half of the garden is in sun. Best of both worlds

It is good on super hot and sunny days. Bloody rubbish in winter though

I've got a north facing garden with a patio immediately out onto the garden in petmenant shade and another one further back which in the summer gets sun from about 11am until 7pm.

It's great in days like today, but my front room leads onto the garden and it is dark and cold, particularly in the winter.