Yes, shade does help a lot!
When I see something worth trying to save at this point, if its small enough I go put a small plastic patio table over it or bedside it to shade it from the afternoon sun.

It does help a lot if you do it before its too late.

Agree on the need for shade for plants that are struggling. It's wonderful if you can find the right size decorative items. Using those little patio tables is a good idea. Sometimes I prop shallow cardboard boxes, the kind we get at Costco, up on sticks.

That's a good idea. The poor plants need shade so much that I hadn't given a lot of thought to how it looks with buckets and other misc. items propped up around the yard. I'll try to come up with more decorative ideas.

I saw someone sun using umbrellas perched above his small jappanese maple. He had three brightly colored umberllas perched across his yard.