The Overall Best Shade Garden Plants for 2024
Finding plants that grow well in your shaded spaces can be quite difficult, but luckily there are multiple plants that love shade.
In this short and no-fluff article, we will reveal the 13 overall best plants for shade that are perfect for pots, cottage gardens, and shaded garden spaces which we have experience with because we saw, inspected, and grew them.
So you finally have plants that thrive in shaded spaces and don't worry anymore.
Hostas, varying in size from 30 cm to 1 m (1-3 ft), thrive in partial to full shade and moist, well-drained soil in pods, containers, or on the ground. Known for their lush foliage, they're perfect for ground covers and work well as woodland garden plants. Hostas are perennials that are great for cooling the soil and providing habitats for wildlife.
Hosta
Ferns
We found that Ferns prefer shady areas and consistently moist soil. They're excellent for creating a thriving woodland garden similar to Hostas and are good for air-purifying. Fern plants also add a nice appearance to any shady spot in your green space but are also nice as hanging basket shade plants.
English Ivy
English Ivy, with its ability to climb up to 20-30 m (65-100 ft), is a classic choice for vertical gardens. It prefers partial to full shade and well-drained soil. The climbing shade plant is known for being a dark green leafy foliage plant, which provides year-round greenery making it ideal for vertical gardens or covering spaces and walls.
Bleeding Heart
Bleeding Heart, reaching 60-90 cm (2-3 ft), prefers moist, well-drained soil in partial to full shade. Its heart-shaped pink or white flowers make it one of the best outdoor shade plants for pots or planters, adding a touch of pink in darker gardens. This plant is a classic choice for cottage-style shade gardens.
Coleus
These colorful shade garden plants offer a wide range of leaf colors and patterns. It's perfect for adding a bold splash of color and can be easily combined with other shade-loving plants for a vibrant display. The leafy plant with its stunningly colorful foliage, can grow up to 30-60 cm (1-2 ft) and thrives in partial shade and well-drained soil.
Yew
Yews are tree-like shade-loving evergreen plants that reach heights of 1-20 m (3-65 ft) most of the species are perfect evergreens for shaded areas. It is best to plant them in well-drained soil and in a full shade spot. These deer resistant shade shrubs, February or July are often used for hedges or as foundation plantings, providing a year-round dark green backdrop.
Hellebores
Hellebores, growing to about 30-45 cm (12-18 in), are one of the few plants that bloom in late winter to early spring. They prefer well-drained, fertile soil and partial shade. With their nodding, cup-shaped flowers in various colors, Hellebores are perfect for adding early-season interest to your shade garden.
Spider Plant
Spider Plant is an ornamental plant variety that reaches lengths of 30-60 cm (12-24 in) and is a popular choice for indoor spaces. For most shade garden benefits plant it in well-drained soil and indirect light similar to English Ivy. Known for its easy propagation, Spider Plant adds a dynamic element with its arching leaves and baby plantlets.
Pulmonaria, growing to about 30 cm (12 in), prefers moist, well-drained soil in partial to full shade. Known for its speckled foliage and early spring flowers, the full shade plant is a drought-tolerant shade plant that adds texture and color to shade gardens. It's a great ground cover and works well in pots for shaded patios.
Pulmonaria
Aucuba
The Aucuba plant is known for its large, glossy leaves often speckled with gold, providing a unique visual texture and contrast in your garden. Aucuba reaches up to 3m (10ft) in height and prefers well-drained soil and partial to full shade. The Bush looks like a normal leafy garden plant but surprisingly it is evergreen.
Vinca
This ground cover plant for shade is valued for its evergreen foliage and star-shaped, blue flowers that appear in spring. Vinca plant is an excellent choice for covering large shaded areas, offering a low-maintenance solution for underplanting trees or shrubs. Vinca, also known as Periwinkle, grows to about 10-20 cm (4-8 in) tall. It prefers well-drained soil and can tolerate full to partial shade.
Swiss Cheese Plant
With its distinctive split leaves, these partial sun bushes Swiss Cheese plants create a dramatic tropical effect, making it a popular choice for adding a bold, green statement to any vertical garden. They reach heights of 2-3 m (6-10 ft) indoors and are ideal for larger vertical gardens. The plant likes indirect light and well-drained soil.
Pieris
Pieris, reaching about 1-3 m (3-10 ft), thrives in acidic, well-drained soil and partial shade. These evergreen bushes with red new growth are known for their amazing clusters of bell-shaped flowers, Pieris adds a nice touch to your shaded areas. It's a low-maintenance and partially drought tolerant shade plant that provides year-round beauty and can tolerate periods of drought.
Sources
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Aucuba: Aucuba japonica | North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox (ncsu.edu)
Vinca: Vinca minor | North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox (ncsu.edu)
Yew: Taxus (Yew) | North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox (ncsu.edu)
Spider Plant: Spider plant, Chlorophytum comosum – Wisconsin Horticulture
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Calin has been in the garden industry for 5 years and knows much about gardening and plants. He owns this website and is responsible for most of the content.