21 Shade Garden Flowers for Beginners

Do you have the perfect area in your yard but it’s a little too shady? The grass doesn’t necessarily grow there and every plant you have tried doesn’t grow there either. Are you all out of options?

If your shade garden is giving you shade, look no further! It’s just a matter of changing up your perspective and finding the right shade garden flowers that thrive in the shade.

This post is all about shade garden plants that will give you amazing curb appeal.

Since you don’t really know what to grow, you will need to do some minor planning. Find out how much shade is in your shade garden area. Is it partly shady or completely shady? You will need to know this before you choose your plants. Some plants will thrive in different types of shade. For example, most elephant ears like partial shade. They can take direct sunlight, but you will have to water them more and monitor them to make sure the leaves aren’t turning yellow. So definitely check the plant tag (*rule of thumb*) to be sure you are planting them in ideal conditions.

Annual vs. Perennial

If you want to switch up your garden every year, and you are not necessarily ready to make a permanent commitment to one type of flower then you would want to stick with an annual. Annuals do not come back every year. Annuals are plants that you would need to replant every year.

If you know exactly what you want in your shade garden, then you may want to consider looking at perennials. Perennials are plants that come back every year thus keeping you from having to replant the same plant over and over.

Keep in mind, there may be some annuals that you want in your shade garden every year. You will have to plant these flowers every year. For example, you may like the fall color of the coleus, and you know that you want this plant in your garden every year. You will have to plant this flower every year. Some gardeners have a mixture of annuals and perennials for that reason.

Planting perennials will give your garden a good foundation! If you want a mixture of annuals, you may want to consider putting them in the front of the garden so you will have easy access to them.

Prepping your shade garden

If you currently have grass in your shade garden area, you want to dig it up! If you have weeds, you want to pull those up too. Don’t dispose of the grass and weeds because it is very fertile and can be used in compost. You can start a compost pile anywhere in your yard or buy a container strictly for composting. If you need composting ideas, check out this site for more information.

Once you have removed the grass and weeds, you can till the ground with a rake or a cultivator. This does not have to be a gas or electric cultivator. You can use a hand cultivator which looks similar to a rake. You want to break up any clumps you may have in your soil. The cultivator will break up the clumps and leave them in place whereas the rake will pull the clumps of soil closer to you. For this reason, it is best to use a cultivator for this step.

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Prepping the soil

Since your garden is in the shade, you want to give them the best start possible. First, add general fertilizer. This can also be organic, but just make sure it’s for flowers. Once you add the fertilizer, add compost. Your plants will thank you for adding these amendments!

Shade Garden Flowers

1. Azaleas
2. Camelias
3. Rhododendrons
4. Holly
5. Boxwood
6. Hostas
7. Autumn Fern
8. Maidenhair Fern
9. Royal Fern
10. Heuchera/Coralbell
11. Vinca Minor
12. Begonia
13. Spotty Laurel
14. Golden Bamboo
15. Flowering Tobacco
16. Japanese Maple
17. Creeping Jenny
18. Golden Stripped Grass
19. Lady’s Mantle
20. Euphorbia
21. Hydrangeas

Arranging your plants

Once you have selected your plants, arrange them according to the spacing guidelines suggested on the plan tags. Unless you know for sure how you want your arrangement to look, I would try 3 different layouts and pick the best one. When removing the plants from the container, be gentle. If the plants are root bound, gently pull the roots apart with your hands or a garden fork.

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Now that you have chosen a layout, water your plants. You want to be generous with watering since the plants have just moved into a new home.

Now you’re all set to have a show-stopping shade garden!

This post was all about shade garden plants.