shade flowers?

Are there any flowers that
can survive just shade?
Not partial. Really just shade!
I have ivy, but would like some
color if possible,
whatcha think?

Personally, I hate ivy. How about
Azalea & Rhododendron
Astilbe
Impatiens
Campanula
Hardy Geraniums
Chinese Foxglove
Foamflower
Pansy - Viola
Check out the Shade Forum, use the advanced search and specify shade & your zone at PDB http://plantsdatabase.com/advanced.php?nn%5B16%5D=0&nn%5B1%5D=0&nn%5B2%5D=0&nn%5B3%5D=12&nn%5B4%5D=5&nn%5B5%5D=0&nn%5B6%5D=0&nn%5B7%5D=0&nn%5B8%5D=0&nn%5B9%5D=0&nn%5B23%5D=0&nn%5B10%5D=0&nn%5B12%5D=0&limit=50&Search.x=37&Search.y=7 , use google with "shade flower zone 7" http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=shade+flower+zone+7
Look for color and texture with plants like Hosta.

Good luck narrowing down the choices.

George

I had some fancy begonias in my shade garden last year and they did great!

;~D

LimeyLisa Kay

wow, I never even tried to use the advanced search on the pdb. Pretty nifty. That's how to narrow down plant id too.
Thanks for the tip!!!

Hi Deller - Have you looked into Cimicifuga (Bugbane) I just looked and there's some in the Plants Database. These bloomed for me under a dense pine tree right up near the trunk in back of the hosta. They bloom late fall and were quite lovely.

How about Columbine? I have some growing with my hosta & Astilbe under 2 trees.

Wow..my head is spinning...
You gals are better than the
public library..
I see I have a few days of
looking around at all the sites..
Tank Q
by the way, are elephant ears
hard to start and grow..think
I would like those..Also, I didnt
plant the ivy, it came with the
house, I'm not too thrilled with
it either, but it better than looking at dirt...haha

Sexist! :-}

George

No one said coral bells so I'll throw that one into the list. My purple ones are were 2 yrs. old this summer and were grown in full shade. They threw out quite a few babies that I gave away this fall. Many of the leaves were 5-6 in. across and some were larger than that. And I'd second the columbine, astilbe, impatiens and add coleus. My foam flowers looked nice early then struggled. One died so I moved the other 2 back farther into full shade. Hope they'll do better there. Also thanks for the search tip, George. I learn something new here everyday. Welcome deller, you joined on a GOOD day, my birthday. tee hee :)

Kooger,
You and Elvis on the same day...
happy birthday!!!!

potEmUp
So sorry, George, I am really
a hipicrite...My name is Dale
and everyone assumes I am a man,
NOT,,, so please forgive me I
really should have known better,
No one ever remembers Roy Rogers
wife///

You mean the Dale who hung around with Buttercup. What was the name of the Pat's Jeep?
You are forgiven. With my curly locks, I am often mistaken as female!

George

PotEmUP
TANK Q. i feel better now..
AND THAT JEEP WOULD BE CALLED
NELLIE BELL...I'M A TRIVIA WIZ.
DON'T THINK TOO MANY FOLKS CAN
STUMP ME...BUT YOU ARE WELCOME TO
TRY..TAKE CARE

I used to work with a lady (in the early 60's) who had a yellow jeep, named buttercup. (Sort of a mix from Roy & Dale.)
What is the name of the equivalent to the oscars for comic books & cartoons?
Why is that name used?
What other common household device has a variant with the same name? (One of my favorite little trivia bits.)

PotEmUp
YOU REALLY PLAY HARDBALL...
NO WARM UP THROWS..
I THINK YOU MAY HAVE ME HERE.
THE ONLY THING I CAN THINK OF
IS EITHER REUBEN OR KIRBY..
AM I CLOSE

Ignatz http://users.rcn.com/aardy/comics/awards/ignatz.shtml He was the pesky nemesis of Krazy Kat. http://www.toonopedia.com/krazy.htm
The household item is a pendulum clock. The mechanism is reminiscent of a tether ball with two poles getting in the way http://www.gems4me.com/igpencloc10.html


See ya on Jeopardy!

Don't forget Hardy Begonia, Lamium, Vinca (almost as bad as ivy), Cast Iron plant, Creeping Jenny and Hellebores.

Hi Azalea!
I grew up with begonia's, for
some reason I can't stand them,
it must be a mental thing, because they are very pretty. My mother,
grandmother, aunt etc, everywhere
begonia..enough begonia..haha
Whats a cast iron plant?

PotEmUp
I know when I'm in over my head.
UNCLE UNCLE

Cast Iron plant is a hardy shade loving plant that would add some interesting height to your shade garden. It is a simple blade shape leaf that stays green all winter. It multiplies slowly from the roots. I like it mixed in my hostas. Gets to be about 2 ft tall for me, but I understand it gets much taller in warmer climates. No blooms that I have ever seen.

Azalea
I like this plant and it would look
really great with a mix of hostas.
would you have any seeds from your
cast iron plants?
deller

No flowers=no seeds! But I will send you a start for postage. Email me.

It's okay George, everyone thinks I'm a male till they meet me.........but very few can remember how my name is spelled.....LOL.

"eyes"
Jerrie

How about lamiums. They are great for filling in shady areas where nothing else will grow, and some are quite showy. Most everything the rest of you grow as shade plants grow in full sun here, and they don't die back over the season, so we can enjoy the blooms and/or foliage all year long. What about digitalis (foxglove). Most are biennial,but avid re-seeders... and forget-me-not, also a re-seeing biennial. Goatsbeard loves shade, as do ferns. Ligularia grow in half day shade here, but probably shade most elsewhere.

Corydallis Lutea is great for the whole season. Yellow flowers with a ferny foilage. Can really spread, but easy to control.
Bonnie

This was a great thread. I can't add much to shade plant list. At my other place had lots of shade, but when moved here there was nothing, almost 9 years ago. I planted trees even before my house was in place and am still planting, but don't have a lot of shade yet. Did anyone mention hostas they are great for shade. Donna

Violets can take some shade, as do lily of the valley

Ladyblue62,I will obtain the seeds
you suggested, also Weezinggreees
(I love that name), for some reason
thats the nickname they decided to
call me at work..Weezie...
I also will obtain the flowers and plants you suggested. You guys are
a walking enclyclopedia...
I have a shih tzu that torn up the
fence today and ran to the other
street, well at 17 degrees I had to
track the little shi- down. So my garden fund as shrunk alot, due to
new fence replacement..altho I was so cold and angry with him today
I would have put him up for adoption. asap..BUT he's family and
you all know how that goes. Ya
love them no matter what..
deller

Email me if you can grow them from seed, Deller. I've always got extra seeds to share. Gotta take care of those little doglets!

weezingreens
Absolute without a doubt
I would take you up on some seeds.
let me know where to sase,
me and ColbyJack(puppy) Thank You
deller

I was doing a little bit of research for shade plants last night, as I'm starting a shade garden this Spring. The ones I am mostly interested in are:

Vinca Minor (blooms spring/summer)
Pink Turtlehead (blooms summer/autumn)
Baby Blue Eyes (blooms summer)
Bleeding Heart (blooms spring/early summer)
False Goatsbeard (blooms late summer)
Common Shooting Star (blooms Spring to early summer)
Mossy Sacifrage (Peter Pan) - (blooms spring)
Forget-me-Not (blooms spring)
Snowdrop (Galanthus snivalis) (blooms "WINTER") WOW!
Pearly Everlasting (blooms late summer)
Japanese Spurge (blooms spring)

I have the Bleeding Heart already, but if anyone has any seeds from what I've listed above and can share, please email me!

Karrie

Pulmonarias also make a great addition to the shade garden; I grow them with hostas, ferns (painted ferns are especially nice in the shade), lamium, bleeding hearts, myosotis, anemones, tiarella, heuchera, and astilbe (among other things)


I was thumbing through eBay today and saw this: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3578783381&category=11112 and remembered this thread - thought somebody here might be interested if you're just starting a shade garden :)

Anybody say Chinese Evergreen yet? I wish I could grow this, but I have very little shade.

PotEmUp
which came first the flower or the
seed?

I think it was the seed. The chicken that crossed the road ate it and then pooped it out to grow a large flower (this was all in the days before Miracle Grow.)

LOL!!!!!!

Karrie, I just ripped out a bed that was infested with vinca minor, violets and crab or quack grass. They outcompeted everything else in the bed and it became necessary to just tear it all out, salvage a few tulip bulbs that survived and start all over. So I am debating on what else to plant, it is under a tree so I'll put down leaky soaker hoses before I plant anything. By then the tulips will all be up and I will know where the planting spaces are. So far I am thinking of trying some hosta and wax begonias in there and planting a lot of alyssum, (if it doesn't bloom at least it will be a different kind of leaves) but NOTHING with roots that run sideways. When I tried to deal with lateral roots it always interfered with what I wanted to keep.

This message was edited Jan 14, 2004 7:56 PM

Mary,
I can see how vinca can do that, just like Ivy. They are something you really have to stay on top of. A friend of mine has them and they are beautiful. As for the violets and crab/quack grass, I wouldn't want those either.

Mary, I would certainly go with impatiens over wax begonias. I planted both on the east side of the house last summer and the impatiens were huge and filled in quickly, then became mounds of glorious colour. The begonias never did cover all the ground. The whole side will be impatiens next year! :)

I don't know WHAT I am doing wrong, but I have never had a whole lot of luck with impatients. Bums me out, as I really like them! Any suggestions?