What could I put here?

[AHungryCaterpillar]

When I moved Into my house the garden was a bit of a mess, there is a huge tree which means the area under is shaded, the previous person living here has for some reason laid patio on a slope so it is uneven making that whole side of the garden unusable as can’t walk on it or put anything on it. I wanted to rip up the patio and replace it with grass but been told because of the shaded area grass won’t grow there. What else could I put there?

Perhaps remove the patio and replace with wood-chippings or decorative shingle or pea gravel. Intersperse with larger decorative stones for rockery type effect, then plant up with woodland loving plants.
Add stepping stones/sawn tree trunk pathway and solar lights.
Could you put some seating under the tree to make a focal point?

This site has some good ideas for plants which will grow under trees..

www.saga.co.uk/magazine/home-garden/gardening/advice-tips/planting/how-and-what-to-plant-under-trees

Thanks I did think about wood chipping or gravel but I have a cat so would it just be used as a giant litter tray? 😬

My cats scratched around the bark topped rose bed for a while but ended up using it to sleep on rather than a litter tray. My compost filled herb bed turned into the litter tray instead

Small fine gravel can be a bit of a cat magnet, but not the marble-sized stuff.

I've been encouraging a moss lawn in the shady section at the back of our garden.

Lippia nodiflora makes a lovely alternative to grass where it's too shady.

You can walk on it too, and no need to mow.