Planting on the Shady Side
Channel: YttriumNitrate
Date: 2012-06-23

A tall grapevine trellis close to the shady side of a house is shown along with the various calculations that were used to figure out how high up the trellis needed to be in order to get sun. When planting on the shady  side of a house, the first thing to do is decide what time of the year you need sun, in Indiana that's generally April through September. The linked solar calculator can be used to figure out what the angle of the sun will be at noon at those times. Next, measure the height of the wall you are planting near and how far away from the wall you can plant. Using the trig calculator below, you can figure out how high off the ground something needs to be in order to get sun at the desired times. 

***Note: these calculations work best for months near the equinoxes when the sun is rising in the east and setting in the west. In June, the sun rises in the northeast and sets in the northwest.*** 

Angle of sun in the sky calculator:
http://solarelectricityhandbook.com/solar-angle-calculator.html

Trig calculator:
http://www.carbidedepot.com/formulas-trigright.asp