kkbix, Nyssaman's list looks good. Maple-leaved viburnum and Spicebush are dominant understory shrubs in E. North America and will set fruit in shade. Add Silky dogwood along the edge. Two other shrubs for acid sites are blue-fruited huckleberry, Gaylussacia frondosa and Deerberry, Vaccinium stamineum however these are hard to find in the trade. Herbaceous plants for shade include ginseng and spikenard which both set berries for birds. The song of the wood thrush is like a clear flute. We start hearing it in mid-April. Am not sure if they eat berries, you might ask on the bird forum. Sam

There is shade and there is shade. If it is relatively bright shade you have a lot of options. For instance, if it is shade cast by a wall, but the space is quite open on all other sides, the light levels are still pretty good. In that case, almost any shade friendly plant should do well. There are many lists in this forum. If it's hemmed in by tall evergreens on several sides and it looks like a cave, it will be a bit trickier. In any case hostas should do OK, especially blue ones if the shade is deeper. Epimedium is also good. For instant colour, it's hard to beat impatiens and begonias, and they are very undemanding as far as light is concerned. As far as design is concerned, think contrast. A hosta next to a bleeding heart is nice, for instance, because the contrast between the leaf size, shape and colour is pleasing. Put in a variety of heights, leaf shape, plant shape, and it will be hard to go too wrong.

Amending your soil is always a good idea, if you don't have ideal conditions to start. I think it gives plants a head start when they are first struggling to get established -- and of course, watering every week is a must for the first year! An excellent background shrub might be the red or pink flowering cestrum. I have to watch out for scale in the dry summer months but outside of that, they flower virtually year round in zone 9, and are vigorous multi-branching, 4-8' shrubs. You can prune them to thicken them up a bit, otherwise the branches lean outwards. Another excellent choice might be abutilons, if they are hardy where you are. I've seen conflicting information on the difference varieties so I don't know if they'll work or not. The two most beautiful variegated ones are 'Thompsonii' - very vigorous, and 'Savitzii', which is less so. Aphids can trouble them though. I like variegated plants because they really brighten up a shady spot. For dry shade, there is nothing better than Aucuba 'Gold Dust' -- cheap, easy to find, and gets a substantial 6-10' in height over time. Fabulous to add the leaves to a bouquet, too. Watch out for snails when young, they love to munch on this plant. I have good luck with India hawthorn (Rhaphiolepsis indica) 'Ballerina' in partial shade, it is a smaller, daintier version of the I. hawthorn that flowers profusely, and never seems bothered by insects or drought. I understand epimedrums are very good in shade and dry shade situations, too. I'm in a warmer zone than you so have other varieties instead. Note that hummers and butterflies absolutely adore the cestrums and abutilons so I never use systemics.

If you do summer vegetables it really wouldn't matter about the shade in the winter (as they wouldn't be there, then), and 6 plus hours of sun in the summer is adequate for most. Peppers enjoy being on the drier side - I'm not sure I'd call them drought tolerant but they do handle being dry better than most vegetables. If you plant tomatoes deeply enough, you should be able to water infrequently but really soak them when you do water. If you're not worried about drought tolerant, almost any vegetable will do well with the amount of summer sun you have, and I can't think of any that will do well with that much shade in winter.