You say "besides hosta"...Why? The situation you describes just screams for hosta,,,easy care, morning sun, near the drive etc.
There are many MANY varieties of hosta and a mixed bed would be very attractive.
Linda C

Here is a link that might be useful: Scroll to bottom picture

Linda,
Lol, I meant I know hosta will do well, so please make other suggestions : )
Remy

Hellebores, Epimedium, Geraniums, ferns, especially ferns. Azaleas, low-growing Rhododendrons are a few suggestions.

Here is what has grown well in my shade bed and my mom's shade garden so far....

Arisaema triphyllum - Jack in the Pulpit
Pinellia tripartita - Voodoo lily - Green Dragon
Tricyrtis hirta - Toad Lily
Hostas
Aquilegia canadensis - Columbine
Zebra Grass
Liriope
Yucca
Ferns
Dead Nettle
Sweet Woodruff
Lily of the Valley
Astilbes
Snow-on-the-Mountain
-- Aegopodium Podagraria 'variegata'
Japanese Painted Fern
Coral Bells beaujolais
Coral Bells caramel
Coral Bells key lime
Trillium

For shrubs, I would go with rhododendron, azalea, hydrangea, or if you have the room, a pieris andromeda. Maybe a viburnum, although I think these like moisture. I would also suggest a heavy mulch to help with keeping them moist.

To the above lists, I would add heuchera, heucherella, tiarella, wood poppies (stylophorum??), pulmonaria, dicentra, hakone grass, monkshood, lobelia siphilitica (again, supposedly likes moisture, but I have some that do fairly well in dry shade), foxgloves.

Again, a good mulch helps keep down maintenance chores - it helps retain moisture so less watering is needed and keeps down weeds.

Good luck!
:)
Dee

Skip the viburnum-most get quite large and all do best in sun. But the other suggestions are all good--and I would add spring ephemerals--trilliums, shooting stars (Dodacatheon), trout lilies (Erythroniums).

Hi All,
Thanks for the suggestions so far. Some of these plants I would of never thought of doing well like grass and geranium. For some reason, I assumed ferns need more moisture. And how could I forget pulmonaria as a choice!
Now that I think about it, I bet the heucheras that do so poorly for me because of the winter/spring moisture would love it at his house.
The soil is not acidic where he is so maybe a hydrangea would be the way to go unless someone thinks of another shrub that does well.

Dee,
Lol about the mulch, seems that is all he knows how to do! The beds look so big and promising, just calling me to plant : )
Remy

I'd check to see if some of these self-seed prolifically around your area and avoid those. For instance, Lobelia siphilitica is a terrible pest in my yard, as is Joe-Pye-weed, and I've heard the same about wood poppies.

I have a double file viburnum that blooms well in deep shade, so probably would do fine in your situation, although it is large, and so may not be appropriate if the bed isn't deep enough.

Other plants that I have growing in part shade include Cimicifuga (AKA Actea) which comes in greenleaved and burgandy leaved varieties and has late summer bottle-brush flowers. Mostly they have white flowers, but one of the burgandy varieties has pink flowers. Variagated Solomon's seal is a pretty shade plant. I have periwinkle, which is a groundcover, but may be invasive in some areas. Siberian Iris will tolerate a lot, and some of mine blooms well with less than half day sun. Jacob's ladder does well in my garden in bright shade as do several different heucheras (coral bells) all of which are green leaved varieties with markings that I grow for flowers as much as the foliage.

Also, if it's not really dry and you have some areas with half day sun, check out clematis that grow in shady areas, especially a type three which just needs cutting down to a foot or so before it starts growing in spring. It can grow on a trellis or if planted near the shrub you plant, grow up through that.

nhbabs, good idea about the clematis! That would like nice there if there is enough sun.

Can I ask how big your cimicifuga gets? I was just going to plant one yesterday and hesitated because I wasn't sure of the size, and haven't looked it up yet. I always like to get first-hand experiences, though, in addition to "official" info.

Funny what you say about the lobelia. I just read here on the forums somewhere on a thread about invasives that some people regret planting lobelia. Not so for me. I wish mine would spread more! And the wood poppies spread nicely, IMO - maybe three new plants per year for me. Mine are in dry shade, so perhaps that makes a difference.

I'm glad you mentioned the viburnum. I suggested it above because I have one in almost full shade (gets a bit of afternoon sun) and it is doing very well there. I didn't know when I planted it that they were supposed to be in full sun, and I guess it didn't know either, lol!

:)
Dee

How about astilbe? I'm going to try these in shady areas.

I really like Ravenwy's list. To add I would include Brunnera "Jack Frost" and a white flowering Hydrengea (sorry for bad spelling) vine and Goatsbeard.

Also, don't knock using a few white hostas. I have a few, but not so many that they overwhelm my shade garden. The one that pops the most is "Fragrant Bouquet". "Night Before Christmas" is yet another I like. I'd also look for hostas that produce white flowers, which are quite stunning when bunched together.

Heather

A word on Lobelia syphilitica--it spreads prolifically by seed, but is very easily controlled by cutting it down before seed set. Same with plants like Lychnis coronaria (rose campion), ornamental onions, chives, garlic chives, and some Achilleas. Just don't let them set seed!!

Some great suggestions above; I see some of my favorites there. The only plant I'd like to add is leucothoe. Low-growing, shrub-like, evergreen, few pests or diseases that I know of. The foliage on the "Rainbow" variety is a variegated green-white-red.

Did anyone mention pieris japonica (andromeda)? Wonderful shrub for the shade - evergreen, early spring flowers, new leaves often come in red before turning green.

Hostas can be lovely and interesting, the problem is they can grow quite large and leave an immense blank spot when their lush foliage is absent. I like to mix in early spring bulbs, evergreens and other perennials that make an earlier appearance (and then provide contrast later in the season).

Ooh, I did! I did! Mention pieris, that is, lol! I LOVE my pierises (pieri, lol??). Unfortunately, they were planted right under two windows, before I bought the house. I've been hacking them back over the years. Hoping to move them, but they have been there for years and the soil is very, very poor and I'm sure the roots are a mess. Not sure if this is a mission that can be accomplished... at least without a backhoe!

However, they are lovely shrubs, beautiful foliage, especially when new and red, as agardenstateofmind says. Little white flowers that the bumblebees love, and the birds love to shelter in them also. A friend of mine has hers pruned to be more like a tree, with the lower branches exposed, and it's quite nice.

:)
Dee

I would say toad lilies, and spiderwort. Here is a pic of my favorite spider wort planted with golden creeping jenny.
It just glows in the shade. (Sweet Kate)
{{gwi:217883}}
primula, bleeding heart plants, crested iris, ajuga, solomons seal, ferns. Theres all kinds of things besides hostas you could plant. -Jessica

I'm glad I've gotten a lot of suggestions. : )
I thought Astilbe needed moisture, maybe just in more sun?
Pieris is a very pretty shrub, but it needs acid too doesn't it? Or is is less picky than Azaleas?
The burgundy Cimicifuga sounds really cool.
Toad Lilies that's another cool plant to think about!
I'm going to steer clear of anything that might be a re-seeding problem. I want to make this as easy care for my brother as possible. I know he would cut things back that look bad, but he just may not get to it until seeds have spread.
Remy

Astilbes do need moisture, and so does cimicifuga. I planted a cimicifuga "Brunette" in shade last year, the leaves go brown and crisp at the edges as soon as the soil dries out. (btw, I would very much welcome some info about its mature size - I put it behind tall phlox and am having second thoughts about the location).
Of the plants mentioned above, Solomon's seal seems the safest bet, if your brother forgets to water. Lily of the valley will do very well, but will spread like a disease.

I didn't read all the posts, but "Jack Frost" Brunnera is really great for shady areas. Not much to look at the first year, but it has done really well since then. The leaves are white variegated, sort of "frosty" and it produces bright blue flowers in spring. Mine are still in bloom. Very low maintenance and after the flowers bloom you've still got the nice foliage. Foliage is always something important to consider in a shady bed.