What Does Sun Position Really Mean?
While the difference between Full Sun and Part Shade is easy! Knowing the minor difference can make a massive difference for the performance of your plants!
Full Sun: Direct sun will make these plants super happy, they love to sun bake and will do poorly with more shade, often underperforming or not flowering at all due to stress.
Part Sun: Some direct sun will make these plants happy, they love to sun bake but can tolerate some shade for part of the day, too much shade and they will underperform.
Part Shade: They still can enjoy some direct sunlight in the morning or evening but don't allow sun during the peak of the days heat as this will typically burn the foliage/flowers of these plants and underperform.
Full Shade/Shade Loving: These plants can tolerant only a very limited direct sun exposure, don't allow sun during the peak of the days heat as this will typically burn the foliage/flowers of these plants
Keep in mind, plants often are catalogued under multiple sun exposure options. The first sun exposure listed and the exposure pictured on the front of the label is their favoured sun tolerance.
Below is a handy general guide to check if a plant can go in a space in your garden, see how many hours of a day there is direct sunlight in the spot.
6+ Hours of Sun (Winter)
12+ Hours of Sun (Summer)
4-6 Hours of Sun (Winter)
6-12 Hours of Sun (Summer)
4 Hours or less of sun (Winter)
6 Hours or less of sun (Summer)
Limit Direct Sunlight (All Year)
