Perennials for Dry Shade
I get asked all the time about growing a plant in these conditions and the my best bit of advice is that the plants below will survive in dry shade but in order for a garden or plants to thrive in dry shade, you have to water.
What Happens in Nature
Think about what happens in nature. If you walk in a mature pine forest, there are very few plants living in the shade of these beautiful trees. The trees “outcompete” the understory plants and kill them off. That’s what evergreen trees do. They provide dense shade where plants have a hard time getting light (remember that many plants survive under deciduous trees because they spring up and get their light before the leaves come out) and the fibrous root systems of the evergreens suck all available moisture from the ground.
So, when gardeners ask what to grow in these conditions, my advice is to grow a “watering hose”. :-)
Plant List
Having said that, here’s a list of perennial plants that will survive in dry shade once established. You do have to water them to get them established. And note that they will never grow quickly or give you massive flower show.
Surviving under evergreens isn’t thriving.
•Aegopodium
•Carex
•Convallaria
•Epimedium×
•Eupatorium
•Euphorbia
•Euonymus
•Gaultheria •Geranium
•Hellebore
•Heuchera
•Hedera
•Hypericum
•Lamiastrum
•Lamium
•Liriope
•Luzula
•Pachysandra
•Salvia
•Sedum
•Symphytum
•Vinca
Do you have a question about Perennials for Dry Shade?