The drawing changes during the day
The Royal Horticultural Society explains that plants respond differently to shade. That difference invites us to avoid a single image of the courtyard.
At House Angle, we suggest starting with an everyday scene: sitting down for breakfast, hanging washing, reading or receiving someone. Draw where it happens and when you would like to use that place. Then add what you actually observe: lit areas, shadows, obstacles and spaces that remain empty. The exercise does not measure thermal comfort; it helps describe the wish more clearly before choosing a solution.
Do not buy the photograph yet
A reference may show a canopy covering the table or a green wall beside a bench. In your list, separate that intention from the object depicted. Perhaps you want to protect one particular seat, retain a view or keep the centre free. Those three priorities can lead to different conversations with the garden designer.
Also note what you are willing to maintain and which conditions you do not know. Available size, container, water access and relationships with openings or neighbours are questions to present, not answers that can be inferred from an image. We give no recommended species or universal planting distance here. If the courtyard is above a structure, any proposal involving loads, supports or drainage needs appropriate verification.
Design the conversation, not a promise of results
Keep the initial drawing and revisit it when the time of use or season changes. An incomplete observation can be marked as outstanding. One pleasant afternoon need not become a permanent assertion about the place.
The editorial reading is to think of shade as part of the relationship between activity and space. The planner helps organise questions and records; it does not calculate a temperature reduction or guarantee vegetation growth. The final choice requires checking the site and the plants' needs against specific information.
At a glance
Scope
Observation and editorial reading of a courtyard; no species selection or thermal calculation.
Editorial series
Another angle
Type of review
Verified horticultural source; no visit, temperature testing or plant diagnosis.
Tools
Sources and references
Royal Horticultural Society · Shade gardening ↗General · adaptar al clima y a cada especie · 17/10/2026