I have been experiencing terrible sunburn on some of my hostas with my SW exposure balcony situation. In an effort to somewhat alleviate this, I designed and created a sunscreen. I could only install it on the side, because otherwise it would block the view of the balcony from the front. Therefore, I realize it won't block the very late afternoon sun, but it's the best I could do. It's made from outdoor fabric stretched over a PVC frame, anchored with square wooden dowels run up into the side pieces of the PVC and wired to the balcony railing. It is fastened to the PVC tubing with velcro. I made 6 large bound buttonholes to allow wind to pass through, and as a final touch, I sewed some silk leaves left over from various reptile tank decor to the front side.

Back of sun screen, showing velcro and flaps

Front of sun screen installed on balcony

Back side of sun screen