North-west-facing garden: sun hours by spot and season

A north-west-facing garden gets its sun at the end of the day. On 15 May, 6 metres from the house gets at most 7,5 hours of direct sun, 5 hours of it after midday. From October to February, 6 metres from the house gets no direct sun on the 21st of the month.

Sun hours by distance from the house

At most this many hours of direct sun on the ground, 3, 6 and 9 metres from the back wall. Daylight is the number of hours the sun is up that day.
Day	3 m	6 m	9 m	Daylight
21 March	1	2,5	4	12
15 May	5	7,5	9,5	15
21 June	7	10,5	12,5	16,5
21 September	1	2,5	4	12
21 December	0	0	0	7,5

The worked example. A north-west-facing garden, 6 metres wide, behind a row of houses 6 metres high. A 1.8 metre fence stands on either side, as between most terraced gardens. No tree, shed or house stands behind the garden. Those can only take sun away, so a real garden facing this way gets at most as much sun as this one.

Where does the sun fall in a north-west-facing garden?

For most of the day the sun is at the front or the side of the house. Only in the afternoon, as it moves round to the west, does it come into the garden. In June it sets in the north-west, and the last sun of the day shines straight into the garden.

The distance from the house counts heavily here. On 21 March, 3 metres out gets at most 1 hours of sun and 9 metres out 4 hours. So a deep north-west-facing garden has a much sunnier spot at the far end than against the house.

Sun hours through the year

At most this many hours of direct sun on the 21st of each month, 6 metres from the house. The light bar is the daylight of that day.

Where should the terrace go?

If you like the evening sun, put the terrace at the far end of the garden. Against the house it is cool, even in July. That is a good place for plants that want shade, or for a bench to sit out of the sun in summer.

Plants that suit it

3 metres from the house, partial shade: at most 5 h of sun on 15 May

9 metres from the house, sun: at most 9,5 h of sun on 15 May

From the design app's plant list, chosen by the spot each plant likes best. The app judges every plant on 15 May, a day when every deciduous tree is in leaf.

How was this worked out?

The position of the sun comes from the same calculation the design app uses, at 52 degrees north, near Utrecht. Every ten minutes it checks whether the sun can reach the spot, past the house and over the fences. Clouds do not count: these are the hours the sun can reach the spot.

How much sun does your garden get?

Your garden is wider or deeper, and your house is taller or lower. The sun hours calculator works from your own plot in the land registry and the real height of your house and the houses around it.

Work out your garden's sun hours

Questions about a north-west-facing garden

What is the difference between a north-west-facing and a north-east-facing garden?

They get about the same hours of sun, at a different time of day. A north-east-facing garden has morning sun, a north-west-facing garden evening sun. If you drink your coffee in the garden, north-east suits you better. If you eat there on summer evenings, north-west.

How do I tell which way my garden faces?

Stand with your back against the back wall of the house and look into the garden. If the compass on your phone points south, you have a south-facing garden. If it falls between two directions, take the nearest one, or work out your own address with the sun hours calculator.