| Perennial garden flowers can add beautiful elements | | | | the Foxglove blooms in late summer, sending up |
| of color to shady areas of your garden and | | | | spires of flowers that can easily reach four feet in |
| landscape. Many perennial flowers are shade tolerant, | | | | height. |
| and some even prefer shady areas, but you must be | | | | Columbine (Aquilegia). Native to the woodlands, |
| sure that the flower you are planting is appropriate | | | | columbines can grow up to three feet tall and come |
| for the amount of shade your garden is receiving. | | | | in a wide variety of colors. They generally bloom in |
| There are essentially four different shade categories | | | | May and June, and thrive in areas with light shade |
| that are suitable for different plants and flowers: | | | | and moist, well-drained soil. |
| - Light shade (also known as "filtered shade" or "thin | | | | Medium Shade Perennial Flowers |
| shade") generally refers to areas that receive two to | | | | Hardy Begonia (Begonia grandis). There are many |
| three hours of shade daily. | | | | varieties of begonias that grow in tropical climates, |
| - Medium shade (also called "partial shade," "half | | | | but this hardy, medium shade loving variety is an |
| shade" or "semi-shade") is an area that has four or | | | | excellent choice for Northern gardeners up to zone |
| five hours a day without direct sunlight. | | | | six. Their beautiful flowers generally bloom in the fall. |
| - Full shade is an area where there is no direct | | | | Bleeding Heart (Dicentra) - This beautiful plant has |
| sunlight at all during the day, although there is indirect | | | | heart shaped flowers that bloom in May and June. |
| or reflected sunlight available to plants. | | | | Bleeding heart plants range in height from just over a |
| - Deep shade (also known as "heavy shade" and | | | | foot to nearly three feet tall and prefer medium |
| "dense shade") are regions where there is no direct | | | | shade conditions. The plants are poisonous, however, |
| or indirect sunlight during the day. | | | | so care needs to be taken to ensure they are not |
| Once you know what kind of shade you are | | | | planted in areas frequented by children or pets. |
| gardening in, you should be able to select the | | | | Daylily (Hemerocallis) - Beautiful bright orange flowers |
| appropriate shade loving perennial flowers for that | | | | that thrive in medium shade and can be propagated |
| area. Here are some suggestions of some of the | | | | easily. In some areas they are classified as a noxious |
| best shade perennial flowers for light, medium and full | | | | weed because of their quick, spreading habit. |
| shade conditions. | | | | Full Shade Perennial Flowers |
| Light Shade Perennial Flowers | | | | Hosta (Plantain lilies). Although hostas are often |
| Daffodils/Narcissus (Narcissus). From fall planted bulbs | | | | grown for their wonderful foliage, most hostas also |
| you will have beautiful orange, yellow, or white | | | | produce beautiful lilylike white and lavender flowers |
| flowers that do well in light shade. | | | | that bloom in late spring until late summer. |
| Foxglove (Digitalis). A tall light-shade, perennial flower, | | | | |