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We just moved to a new place so I am not sure what spots get what amount of sun during the summer hours. I found a website to calculate the angle the sun will be during any given month but I'm not sure how to factor in the height of the house and fences to figure if the spot will get at least 6 hours. I am in zone 9b.

Alina
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Susan Ross
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  • A geographic location would be helpful as would the reason you want to know (how accurate does the answer need to be?) – George of all trades Apr 13 '17 at 18:40
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    which way does the area you want to work out face, north,south etc? Use a compass (there should be one on your phone) with your back to the house when you do it ...and add that info to your question please – Bamboo Apr 13 '17 at 19:40
  • Zone 9b. Shoot, you've nothing to worry about unless this is winter in your area. Is your garden in the shade of the house? East or west shade? Truly if you are in spring and summer nothing to worry about except planting in the shade. A little shade is fine if it is during the summer and from the west late afternoons. Actually a good thing. If you were a lower zone not so much. Send more information such as zone, what it is you are growing, do you have high winds...as much detail as you are able. – stormy Apr 13 '17 at 21:27
  • I don't know what "zone 9b" means but the biggest variable is your latitude. Also, all the obvious things like which side of the house your garden is on, the height of the house, the distance between the house and the garden, whether there are any hills nearby and how big they are. It's impossible to answer your question without these details. – Dawood ibn Kareem Apr 14 '17 at 04:31
  • @DavidWallace zone 9b is referring to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Plant Hardiness Zones see http://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/PHZMWeb/ for more details. It runs in reverse (higher zone = hotter) to Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Hardiness Ratings (higher rating = hardier) and is map based rather than plant based which the RHS ratings are. The RHS rightly shy away from a map based system as microclimate can have a massive impact on the plant that will grow in a particular area. USDA zone is not relevant here as it does not indicate latitude or aspect. – George of all trades Apr 14 '17 at 07:22
  • Yeah I think it is probably too complicated and I will just have to guesstimate. I am in Sacramento CA. – Susan Ross Apr 18 '17 at 20:44

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Unless you want to spend a long time doing calculations, quickly modelling your house and trees in a georeferenced SketchUp model would be a good start. The shadows can be set for the time of year etc and give a good approximation that should be suitable for your needs. Having done this you will start to realise the question is a lot more complex than doing a quick calculation based on the angle of the Sun and height of your house...

George of all trades
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