How bad is a north facing rear garden?

[bajanasinpajamas]

We currently have a south facing back garden. Have SSTC, and are looking around but very little on the market. We (I) had my heart set on either west or south facing rear garden, but there is NOTHING!
We’ve seen a couple of houses that tick most boxes except they have north facing rear gardens. All I want is to be able to sit out in the evening sun after a day at work - is there going to be any chance of this ?

No, dont don’t do it! 😁. We lose the sun around 5pm and I hate it (doesn’t bother DH) Next time I move it’s to a sunny all day garden as like you I love the evening sun 😁

My back garden is north west facing. I love it! The sun is still on the back patio until about half six. In the morning the garden has full sun, this gradually disappears throughout the day as shadows fall closest to the house and gradually towards the back fence. At least some of the garden has sun through some point of the day.

This is when it is sunny of course. I've had south and west facing gardens and didn't like them. Conservatory too hot, unable to watch TV, etc. Much prefer North ish!

It depends how big it is. Our house is north facing but easily big enough that the sun hits the bottom half of the garden until it goes down, so plenty of room to sit out in the evening.

Depends on how big the garden is, ours is north facing but about 150ft long so gets a lot of sun anyway

If it's north west facing you might get some sun at the bottom of your garden? So much depends on what is around your property in terms of tall trees and other buildings and you can make your garden cozy with fairy lights and fire pits. If you see a house that ticks all the other boxes, I think you might have to forgo the south facing garden.

It will also depend on how big the garden is and how overlooked. My north facing garden was lovely on an evening at the far end, so sat out there, rather than nearer the house .

My garden is north facing and it’s no problem at all. We get the sun over the house into the end of the garden pretty much all day. Loads of plants, trees, pond, washing line. The bit nearest the house doesn’t get as much sun but that’s fine because it means the kitchen is lovely and cool even in hot summers.

Don't do it.

We are out every evening in our north east facing garden, no bother. It’s wide and long though and wraps around the house so escapes shade at the end and one side, I’m not sure I’d go for a small N or NE facing garden.

My parents have a south facing garden and I actually find it too oppressive in the summer. Nowhere to escape in the heat!

It depends on the location of neighbours and trees etc. We have a NE garden but no immediately neighbours to our left facing the house front so we can get sun until 6.30/ 7.14 into a decent corner where we can have evening drinks.

What is lovely is that the rear of the house stays cool but from 8.00am to 4.30am I just step into sunshine. So we have a large sliding door and no glare which is lovely. I also like the mixture of sun and shade.

The only issue is afternoons are dark in Winter.

our garden is wide and short.
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North east no way. Been there and it was awful to lose the sun at 6pm.

We've got a NW facing garden. Was gutted at first because of the ‘north’ aspect (had to be this house at that time though) but due to the way the houses around are positioned we’ve found that in summer we get sun on at least part of it all day, and part of the garden gets the sun from morning until sunset.

There’s a website you can put your co ordinates into and see where the sun will reach at a given time of day or point in the year. Suncalc.org

The negative is that we have to keep our front windows shut until after noon as otherwise we have sun in our eyes from 6am. This is the biggest thing I didn’t factor in and it’s far more annoying than shade in the back. I wish I had found the above website earlier

NE garden that loses the sun at 5pm, i hate it and its the main reason I'm looking to move, I would not recommend

Ours is North facing, but it's also large. Which means we get the sun all day long.

Ours is north facing and gets evening sun because the sun is in the west at that time. The neighbours’ house is in line with ours, though, so the sun doesn’t get blocked from that direction.

My garden is north facing, we get the sun all day. Near the house to begin with and on our patio at the top of the garden until sunset.

North is best, IMO. I've had homes with every aspect. South was the worst. Sun first to disappear closest to the house but I have sun loving plants and flowers elsewhere all over the garden. So patio nearest the patio door won't get sun in the evening, but elsewhere will.

The houses across the road, South rear aspect have viable moss on their roofs (new builds) from the road. Looks unsightly. We have moss on the back of our roof but no one gets to see that!

My last house had a north-facing garden. It was actually lovely in the summer because the house cast a shade, which meant the patio next to the house was always cool and nice to sit in. We had a second patio at the end of the garden, as a sun trap. We moved to a house with a west-facing garden and it’s probably easier to grow things in, but the sun is exactly eye-level at dinner time, so it’s blinding.

We have a north west facing and it gets full sun from midday from May until Sept, with evening sun in similar months. Flowers etc in the corners don't grow amazingly so we have had to play with the layout and build planters but we've worked it out and wouldn't change it!

We love it currently. Our garden faces due north but with nobody to the west so we get evening sun on the patio until at least 8pm this time of year. The sun actually goes down around NW in midsummer anyway. We get more evening sun than a lot of our overlooked west or south facing neighbours. The far fence is fantastic for growing amazing plants as it’s baking in the sun all day.

In winter the sun just doesn’t get high enough to touch the garden at all so frosts and snow really linger. That’s when it gets me down. We’re learning to be very selective with our plants and we even have a gorgeous huge white clematis leaping up the back wall now. Ferns, hostas, acers, bistort, are all thriving.

I think size and shape of garden, surrounding buildings, fences and trees, and where in the country you are all play a role - I don't think it's as simple as south vs north facing. FWIW I love our north facing garden - we're in the south and parts stay sunny in the summer until early evening. The patio close to the house is always in shade and it's a great place to sit on a hot day. My friend lives opposite with an identical but south facing garden - it's often unbearably hot. I also like that the front of our house is bright and sunny, and is warm even on cold winter days if it is sunny. Whereas my friend's front room is gloomy and cold for much of the year. Our garden is in near constant shade in winter months though - doesn't bother me but might be an issue for others.

West facing rear garden. Morning sun on the decking at the end of the garden furthest from the back door in the morning. Sun on the main patio next to house from midday until the sun sets in the evening. If it’s too oppressive in the summer go back to the decking area after work. West is perfect if you have some shade too

it would be a mistake except for the handful of days when we get a high temperatures.
it’s depressing if you like gardening as most plants wont thrive.

I too have a North West facing rear garden. I must admit I wasn’t sure at first, I made the concession because the house has so much potential on a great street in a really popular area.

Fast forward 12 years and I have no problem with it. The front is South facing so I tend to have quite exotic plants here. I have a mixture on the back, depending where it gets the sun. The more shaded areas have architectural plants and lots of huge pots. The conservatory never gets too hot, it’s great.

I wouldn’t let it put you off if it’s the perfect house, I have no regrets, 🤗

I love my north facing garden - it is cool in the heat of the summer and densely planted with shade-loving plants.

the far end of the garden gets sun up to the end of the day, but it is not the same as having sun coming into the kitchen window in the evening.

Thanks all - useful to get lots of different opinions!
Will see how they are when we view - seeing them late afternoon so should get a feel for how light it is out there