Sunlight Guide: Which Plants Grow in Full Sun, Half Sun and Shade

Key Takeaways

How much sunlight do vegetables need?

The honest answer is: it depends on which part of the plant you want to eat. Leaves need the least light. Roots need more. Fruits need the most. Cornell University teaches this in three steps, and the other extension services we checked follow the same pattern with slightly different numbers.

Most of these numbers come from US universities. India is also in the northern hemisphere, so the basic idea carries over, but we found no Indian source that gives sun hours by region or by balcony direction. Use the ranges as a starting point and watch your own plants.

Full sun, part sun and shade: what the words mean

Plant labels use these words loosely, and the sources do not agree. Here is what we could verify.

So where does that leave you? Our reading: aim for at least 6 hours for fruiting crops, and 8 or more if you want strong harvests. For leafy greens, 3 to 5 hours is the floor and 4 to 6 hours gives better plants. We use the label "half sun" for these 3 to 6 hour spots. It is our plain-language label, not an official extension term. Sources also do not give a verified hour range for "full shade", so we do not invent one. Cornell is blunt about it: no vegetables will grow in a shady spot.

Crop-by-crop: sun hours on My Mali packs

The table below uses the sun hours printed on each My Mali product page, so it matches the pack in your hand. Harvest days count from sowing.

The pattern matches the universities: leaves 4-6 hours, roots 5-6, fruits 6-8. Look at the herb seeds and exotic and salad ranges if your light is short, and the vegetable seeds range if you have a bright spot. Texas A&M adds that leafy crops such as lettuce, cabbage, spinach and parsley tolerate more shade than root crops like radish, beet and turnip, and that fruit-bearing plants such as cucumber, pepper, tomato and eggplant need the most sun of all.

Two notes on herbs. Maryland Extension says most herbs prefer at least 6 hours of full sun, but chervil, mint, chives and cilantro (coriander) can grow in light shade. Clemson adds that herb flavour oils are produced in the greatest quantity when plants get plenty of sun. So a shaded coriander pot will grow, but the leaves may be milder.

What to grow by hours of light

We could not find a source that says how much yield you lose for each missing hour of sun, so we do not give a number. What we can say is that a plant that gets less light than it needs will grow, but will stay thin or give less. Our October sowing list and the Monsoon Sowing Guide mention sun hours for each seed.

How to map the sun on your balcony

Do not trust a quick look. The sun moves, and walls, railings and the building across the road all cast shade. A simple map takes only a few days.

1. Pick a clear day. Draw a rough plan of the balcony on paper, with the railings and walls.
2. In the morning, shade in the area where sunlight falls. Illinois Extension teaches this with crayons: one colour in the morning, another around 1 pm and a third around 5 pm. The more colours overlap on a spot, the longer that spot gets sun.
3. Illinois samples three times a day. Checking every hour is My Mali's own refinement and gives you a better number, because a spot can be sunny at 8, shaded at 10 and sunny again at 1. This hourly method is editorial, not from a university.
4. Repeat for two or three days. Add up the hours of direct sun for each spot.
5. Write the number on your plan. Match each pot to the table above.

Clemson also advises watching the site through the year, because the sun and shade change with the seasons. A spot that is bright in winter may be shaded in summer by a building or tree. Re-check in each season. You can also use a phone app that maps sun and shade. NC State Extension notes that such a model is based on calculation, so what you see yourself is more accurate.

Direction: what we can and cannot say

Maryland Extension says that, in the northern hemisphere, south and west exposures are sunnier and warmer, and north and east are shadier and cooler. Illinois Extension also says a south-facing spot is best. India is in the northern hemisphere, so the logic should hold. But we found no Indian source that gives balcony advice by direction, and we found nothing verified on how the sun's angle changes in the south of India. If your balcony faces north or east, map it before you decide.

Western exposure has a risk. Colorado State warns that western sun can scald plants, and reflected light off light-coloured walls and paving makes it worse. Clemson also says to protect plants from very high heat caused by light reflection off pavement.

Signs your plant is not getting enough light

• Tall, spindly, thin stems. A Texas A&M troubleshooting table lists tall, spindly and unproductive plants as a sign of insufficient light, and the fix is to move the pot to a place with more light.
• Leggy seedlings. Illinois Extension says insufficient light is the most common cause of long, leggy seedlings.
• Crowding. Illinois adds that seedlings crowded together compete for light and become leggy. Thin them to the pack spacing.
• Leaves but no flowers or fruit. This is common when a fruiting crop gets leafy-crop light. It is a sign, not a proof, because other things can cause it too. Our guide on getting more flowers on plants covers the other causes.

What to do: move the pot toward the light, use a railing or wall bracket to lift it higher, or switch to a crop that needs less. The sources we checked on grow lights are about seedlings only, so we do not give advice on lighting fully grown vegetables on a balcony.

Too much sun: heat and afternoon shade

In an Indian summer, the problem can flip. Plants get too much heat, not too little light. We found no Indian source on afternoon shade for balcony pots, so what follows uses US university advice and one ICAR article.

• Oregon State Extension says to consider moving potted plants to a shadier spot during a heat wave. WSU Extension says to move containers into shade and to use shade cloth where possible.
• Oregon State also says temperatures under shade cloth can be up to 10 degrees (Fahrenheit) cooler, and to use a frame so air can move above the plants.
• ICAR Indian Farming says nets of 25-75% shading are used for nurseries and vegetables, and that 30-50% nets are used for vegetables. It also recommends growing leafy vegetables and ornamental greens under shade nets during high light intensity. These figures are for protected cultivation, not balcony pots, so do not treat them as a balcony rule.
• Maryland suggests moving salad boxes to a mostly shady spot in the hottest months. Those are US dates, so use the idea (shade in the hottest season) rather than the calendar.
• Lettuce and coriander bolt in heat. Maryland says long days and high temperatures usually cause lettuce to bolt and turn bitter, so some afternoon shade helps. The coriander pack also says it bolts fast in heat and that some shade in the hottest part of the day helps.

Pots in strong sun also dry out faster. Our watering guide explains how to adjust. For a plan that starts with these checks, see our first 30 days guide, and for a layered design see the balcony kitchen garden.

Conclusion

Match the plant to the light you actually have. Map your balcony for a few days, then choose leafy greens and herbs for 3-6 hours, roots for 5-6 hours, and fruiting crops only if you have 6-8 hours or more. If your light is short, the herb and salad seed ranges are a good place to start, and you can browse herb seeds and vegetable seeds and check the sun hours on each pack.