Evergreen shrub for shade

15 years ago

Help... I would like to plant a few 3-5' evergreen shrub (or second choice is grasses) on the north side of my house which is mostly in shade all day. I already have hostas and Hakone grasses but want something taller behind those to complement. I was thinking of boxwoods. Any other suggestions?

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (12)

Donna
15 years ago
I don't know if they'd be hardy in your zone, but Camellias, Azaleas, Rhododendrons, Loropetalum, and Osmanthus would all fill the bill beautifully.
spazzycat_1
15 years ago
Illicium floridium
Related Discussions
Evergreen shrub for shade?
Q
Comments (7)
I'd do a mix of perennials, you can do Gaultheria procumbens (wintergreen! chew on the berries/leaves, evergreen to semi-evergreen) and the sprawling Phlox divaricata which will flop over if planted on the edge. Phlox divaricata 'May Breeze' is a beautiful off-white/dove grey/baby blue (really strange color) and there are others that come in a bevy of pretty purples too. Microbiota decussata or Russian cyprus seems to take shade. I'll think of others.
...See More
Which evergreen shrub N side shade
Q
Comments (4)
Let's just say that evergreen shrubs that are hardy to zone 5, and can handle shade are not a dime a dozen. Adding in other complicating factors, just makes that list shorter. At least people are being honest, instead of making up answers just for the sake of an answer.
...See More
evergreen shrub for minimum shade.
Q
Comments (4)
I wouldn't worry about the oak to much. The amount of root damage you will cause will be minimal compared to the total root system(even on that side of the tree), as long as you don't cut any large roots. Assuming also you are planting individually, and not preparing an entire bed. The extra watering you will be doing the first year should mitigate the disturbance too. I would bet that the oak has roots in the neighbor's yard too - across the street!
...See More
Recommend a small , evergreen shrub for shade?
Q
Comments (20)
OP is back ;-) I appreciate all the answers I've gotten and I realize that I didn't give you enough to work with. In the first picture, you see the spot. The distance between the house and the hedge is 5 feet and 9 inches. The window is facing north and there's a public walk/bike path on the other side of the hedge (so more or less right outside the window) as you can see in the second picture: The hedge is carpinus betulus and not particularly dense, especially not in the winter: The room (behind the window) is going to become our bedroom. The window sits rather low (knee-height) and it gets very dark here in the winter (from 3.30pm to 8.30am), so when the lights are on, we'd feel rather exposed :-( Blinds would be ok, but I'd also like some kind of plant outside the window that together with the hedge would make it less easy to see every little detail in our bedroom when the lights are on and the blinds open. I'm afraid I have no idea whether I have acidic soil... I'll look up the suggestions you've all given me, but please feel free to share your opinion now that you have more information.
...See More
spazzycat_1
15 years ago
Oops! Forget that suggestion. I see you are in zone 5.
laurell
15 years ago
Donna - many of those shrubs get much larger than 3-5' tall and wide. Rhododendrons get well over 12' tall in time, as do most Camellias. After researching Loropetalum, and Osmanthus, I see that they both get taller than 10 feet. Azaleas seem to be the only recommendation that seems reasonable, as they usually don't tend to get super large. I'm not sure how evergreen it would be down to zone 5 though. My azaleas had a tough time this winter when we had a storm and the temperatures dipped down to 10ÂºF.
mad_gallica (z5 Eastern NY)
15 years ago
Let's start this thread all over again ;-)

The classic is yew. It will handle anything you are liable to throw at it, with the notable exception of deer.

Boxwood might work. They will winterburn if it gets too cold for the variety or if they are exposed to winter wind.

Rhododendrons are going to need wind protection, deer protection and acidic soil. IME, if you have what they want they are very easy. If you don't, don't bother.
slateberry
15 years ago
Not sure if these are right for MI, but what about a holly or mountain laurel? If it were me, I'd put in hollies in the situation you describe. They'd be happier in the shade than the boxwoods, and there are so many choices, and they're lovely, great texture and color variety for your landscape. I love my coastal leucothoes too, but they are so low to the ground, I think you might want something more upright. Also just checked and they only go to 6a.

Yes some of the things suggested in the thread can get big, but in a shady spot, that can take a very long time, and it's easy to keep ahead of the growth when it's so slow. Unless it's bright or only partial shade, I wouldn't worry about size too much.
laurell
15 years ago
I guess I'm just extra adult-size conscious. The previous homeowners put a rhododendron in our front garden bed that's pretty much full shade and now it's taller than the roof and we can't see out of our front window.
User
15 years ago
Queenacres,
I don't know if your still reading this thread or not,
but there are hundreds of varities of rhododendrums.
Some are ground covers, some are real small dwarf plants, and yet others are giants.
There is a nursery rare finds plant nursery, they sell many different kinds of rhodos.
They have one for your yard that won't get too big.
It is ashame you can't try sweet box shrub.
They are hardy to zone 6.
You could try it, mabey if you mulch real well, you never know.
They are gorgeous! The smell is wonderful and they bloom in January and February.
My friend is in zone 6 and she is going to plant one in her front yard this spring in the shade.
Donna
15 years ago
Sorry I have been absent from this forum for awhile. I apologize for not reading the original post more carefully as to the size requirements.

Just as a note, Loropetalum chinense is available in two sizes other than jumbo. Purple Diamond tops out at four feet. Purple Pixie at about two feet by two feet. Again, I have no idea if they are winter hardy for you, but if so, they are strikingly beautiful shrubs with four season interest: very showy spring flowers with purple foliage, good blue-green summer foliage, brilliant red coloring mixed into the green in fall, and evergreen in winter.

IF they are hardy, Camellia sasanqua Hot Flash and Shishigashira will mature at around 3' by 4' and are shrubs of the highest caliber in my opinion. Good, clean, evergreen foliage and lovely fall/winter flowers.

Osmanthus Goshiki with evergreen green/cream variegated foliage is a fairly dwarf shrub, topping out at 3 to 4 feet. It grows so slowly, it could easily be kept pruned to any size you like. Osmanthus heterophyllus Variegata gets larger, but again is a very slow grower, so can be kept where you want it sizewize. It just might be my very favorite shade plant with clean, sprakling white variegation on dark green leaves. It just lights up its space planted among white hydrangeas.

Again, I have no idea about hardiness for you with any of these shrubs.

One holly I would also recommend is Ilex cornuta O'Spring. It has yellow and green variegated shiny leaves and is gorgeous.
Iris GW
15 years ago
Loropetalum is a full sun shrub in zone 7, I imagine it would want full sun further north as well. In addition, it is just barely evergreen in the Atlanta area. After our low temps of 10 F this winter, all the ones in my neighborhood look quite 'burned'.
spazzycat_1
15 years ago
Actually, Loropetalum is quite shade tolerant in zone 7, but regardless, it's not hardy past zone 7 according to most sources, so wouldn't work for the OP.
njbirdlady
15 years ago
Planted 3 skimmias a year ago. they are round, about 15"
in diameter. they have not grown but look healthy.
How large will they get? I need evergreens that are 3-5'.