Sun-requiring species must not sit in the computed shadow of a taller neighbor.
Well established It is settled without a trial. If you skip this, you lose real yield. The planner warns you.
How it works
Photosynthesis. Compute shadow polygons from latitude, date, and mature height.
What to do about it
Move the taller neighbor to the polar edge, or move this plant out of its shadow.
The evidence
Evidence: settled without a trial (solar geometry).
Read next
How this rule has changed
Every change is dated, newest first. The full record, with each reason, is in the data download.
- Wording made clearer
- Details updated
- Added to the rules
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Cite this page
Milpa Gardens. “Sun-requiring species must not sit in the computed shadow of a taller neighbor.” Evidence grade: Well established. https://milpa.garden/rules/sun-requiring-species-not-sit-computed-shadow/
A garden planner built on graded evidence. Every claim states its evidence grade and links its sources on the page. Cite it with the grade, and add the date you read it.
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How we grade evidence
- Well established
- The rule names its mechanism and is settled, by sources a person has read and checked or by plain arithmetic and geometry.
- Promising
- The mechanism is named and the literature backs it. A few questions are still open.
- A good hunch
- Plausible by its mechanism, but field studies are thin, so treat it as a lean.
- Contested
- The evidence points both ways, or no study has tested it, so the planner does not enforce it.
- Refuted
- The claim did not survive its sources. It is kept so the folklore can be answered.