Aquatic plants for part-shade

As I'm sure most people do, I have a few spots in my garden that are slightly more challenging to plant than others. One such area is a border that runs underneath a length of leylandii and has a very clay soil which retains water. This results in a border which is in part-shade and is water-logged for most of the year.

Last autumn, I planted snowdrops and lily of valley there but the bulbs soon rotted, leaving an ominous bare patch. This bare patch has been sitting there staring at me for the last few months, stubbornly resisting any attempts by weeds and grass to germinate there. Every time I looked out of the kitchen window it stared back in at me, with its blank stare. I decided it was time I did something about this awkward patch so I donned my coat and hat and took up the challenge.

Off I went to Wildwoods Water Gardens Centre to find me some aquatic plants. It was quite tricky to find plants that wouldn't mind part-shade but I did come away with some beauties: Marsh St John's Wort, Water Violet, Lychnis flos-cucli "Terrys Pink" and "White Robin" and Athyrim niponicum "Metallicum" pictum (or a silvery coloured fern). I also bought a Ligularia to sit with its roots in the damp bit, but I'm hoping it will be tall enough to be in full sun for the majority of the day.

They are all planted out now and are enjoying the torrential rain we've been having here.For the moment, they are keeping the squished Hosta company (the one that Jake the Peg keeps battering) but not for long as I've decided that Mr Battered Hosta needs to move house closer to the fence and out of the way of clumsy paws.

 I have also put my pot of Sweet Peas "Wiltshire Ripple" here as it gets the morning sun and stays nice and sheltered - a great relief during the high winds and rain over the last few weeks.

 Aerial shot of the newly planted-up damp, shady bit

 Lychnis flos-cucli "Terrys Pink" in foreground, Water Violet in shallow pond in background