'Magnum', a purple heuchera of villosa breeding has survived in both sun and shade and dry and moister (but not waterlogged..) conditions. I like the big, purple leaves - although I would prefer it if they didn't get the silvery cast on the leaves.... They might be worth a try if you can find them.

There are a couple of kinds of Ligularia with dark leaves. You could check out some of the easy annuals such as coleus or purple-leafed Tradescantia. Some of the Tiarellas have central leaf areas of red. Or you could use silver from something like Majeste Pulmonaria. I find that often dark-leafed plants tend to disappear into the shadows in a shady garden, blending too well with the soil or mulch, so I prefer to use foliage that's variegated, gold, and silver with only 1 or two dark-leafed, larger stature plants that are more difficult to miss.

Marie Britt Ligularia would do great in that situation and you would not waste any more money on maybe coral bells. Heucheras really are a fussy plant and not long lived. I love them but I only buy them if they are dirt cheap.

" Heucheras really are a fussy plant and not long lived."

Hmmm.....I don't find that to be at all true :-) And I have a hard time considering almost any native -and ones with a such a broad distribution as heucheras in particular - to be especially fussy. btw, dark leaved forms tend to be extremely sun tolerant so not my first choice for a shady location. Then too, purple or dark foliaged plants tend to visually disappear in much shade :-)

For a shadier spot with some purple foliage, I'd look at heucherellas, a cross between heucheras and tiarellas. Because of the tiarella parentage (they are woodland plants and shade lovers), they tend to be more shade tolerant than many heucheras (only a couple of species of heuchera are real shade lovers).

Otherwise there are a number of purple or dark leaved ligularias (like Britt Marie Crawford) that would love shade, especially moist shade, but they are not exactly "short" or low growing.

There are a couple of kinds of Ligularia with dark leaves.

Twp thumbs up on this suggestion.

I agree with woody that Heuchera 'Magnum' is a really good option.

I am really fond of Ligularia Britt Marie Crawford but if it is too large for you L. 'Osiris Cafe Noir' is very nice with its jagged edged foliage.

btw, I think the drainage is as much an issue as the moisture. You'd be sure to lose heucheras over the winter with wet, poorly drained soil.

Look up "Platt's Black" It is a teeny groundcover and very effective en mass. No idea about cultural requirements.

Try to make sure that dark foliage does get a shaft of light sometimes. Otherwise it can just disappear into the gloom.

For what it's worth -- last fall I planted 3 Espresso hardy geraniums that have dark bronze foliage with lovely light purple flowers. They love my dappled shade and look gorgeous with my chartreuse hostas.

You may also like Impatiens omeiana.

gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)

Hop over to the Heuchera forum. The reason I suggested that it is a fussy not dependable choice because the OP is in my 5/6. It is something that is noticed that PNW is a little perfect Herc growing climate. Gardening is one of those what is one gardener treasure can be another gardener's dead plant.
All those lovely Coral Bells are not for our climate.

You are right they are widely sold because of the beauty but many find that due to their conditions due to zone it is a pretty plant but we cannot guarantee it will be a thriving plant in our gardens for years.

I totally agree marquest - here in zone 5/6 many gardeners treat heucheras as annuals - they love the beautifully colored foliage but know for certain they will not thrive in our conditions. Purple palace is one of the few hardy ones around here.

Yet when I was in Seattle - wow, the heucheras were breathtaking! But they sure don't have our winters. Too many other choices than to fret and baby those heucheras which are getting very pricey.

I find that often dark-leafed plants tend to disappear into the shadows in a shady garden, blending too well with the soil or mulch

That is for sure worth considering.

I am really fond of Ligularia Britt Marie Crawford but if it is too large for you

Here is our "Britt Marie Crawford" ligularia as of this morning. And yes it will be too large for its location...sigh.

I would suggest ajuga for this spot. The ligularia sounds like it would be too large for this location, based on your description (ie, the title of the post says "short" !). Chocolate Chip or Burgandy Glow are gorgeous. If you want something a little bigger, look at Caitlan's Giant.

Heuchera aren't fussy at all in the right conditions, but they despise having wet feet, so the spot you have been putting them in is doomed from the start. You're lucky if you've had some do well there!

Thanks for all the suggestions! I will look all these up. I realize I forgot to list height range in my original post. I was mentally thinking, "heuchera height" but forgot to mention that.

Depending on what I can find, I could place things from around 6" (foreground) to a foot or 18".

I have Ajuga Mahogany as a groundcover nearby. I forgot about Caitlin's Giant being a larger version. I just googled it, and it's hard to find a shot of it in context. Mostly closeups of the leaves or flowers. If it spreads as fast as Mahogany, though, I'd be a bit concerned about letting it into the main bed.