Notes from Scott Woodbury’s presentation.
Scott prefers leaf litter rather than mulch.
You may want to mulch public/presentation areas, but leave leaf litter in the back areas
Leaf litter provides habitat for insects during the winter.
Bush honey suckle is an invasive which you can take out in the fall.
Pull or cut it out and use herbicide on the stump.
Note – I typically pull 20 small honeysuckle and wintercreeper plants every time I weed at Whitecliff Gardens.
He puts in about 40 plants per square yard with 26 species.
Note – in a traditionally planned garden, you would probably have a mass of one species in a square yard and have mulch cover the entire area.
He plants plugs and uses a dibble bar.
Note – I have never been able to buy plugs, but I do buy small plants and use a an auger drill bit.
Fire Pink – most people have trouble growing this…….that has been my experience.
It might need more acidity.
Dry Shade – Round Leaf Groundsel, Erigeron – Robyns Plantain, wild columbine, Heuchera americana, parviflora,
Deer – tend to avoid sedges, switch grass –
Link for Shaw PDF.
Maple trees – are hard to grow underneath them.
Here’s a good list of shade loving plants from Grow Native.
Butterfly Gardening 