8 hours is considered FULL sun ... whether or not there is shade some part of the day .... learned that in my rose growing days .... the issue then becomes... the intensity of the sun ... dawn and dusk full sun is not equivalent to noon sun ... so 4 hours at dawn.. and 4 hours at dusk.. might be a problem for SOME plants ... which require intense levels of light ... i realize you may know most of this... but i use it to refresh my memory .. and to entertain any newbies who are lurking.. and i know you are out there ... we could then add FILTERED light to complicate the whole mess ... lol ... but technically.. that brings us back to intensity ... in the olden days .... 5 years ago .. lol .. you actually had pix peeps who carried photo meters to measure the light intensity ... except for the true photo expert.. that is probably a thing of the past with digital this and that .... with said tool ... you could probably actually define the light level in your SHADE .... and then try to find research indicating how many units of what level of light.. is satisfactory for your plants.. the greenhouse peeps probably have some of this science worked out ... this would be why there are shade clothes that vary from 25 to 60% shade ... depending what you are growing in the man made shade ... ken PS: all of which leaves will standing there scratching his head.. really no further ahead than he was prior to posting... thinking.. aw heck.. i am just going to plant the thing here.. and worry about it in a few years ... lol

There are a few that require shade, like Cryptomeria j. 'Knaptonensis' (Google it - it's quite pretty but it's a smaller variety). Cryptomeria j. 'Sekkan Sugi' can also take shade and gets large - 35' or so at maturity. Both of these have very light-colored new growth which is striking against the older, darker green. Concur that local advice good to secure at this point. Both of these are lovely plants and I think you would find them interesting. They also work well with Japanese maples and other non-conifers for a diverse and satisfying shade garden. Have fun with it! Here is a link that might be useful: Form and Foliage

In my opinion all superior cultivars. Dave Abie concolor 'Compacta' Slow growing. Excellent for rock gardens. Irregular growing habit. Abies concolor 'La Veta' Cool...Jerry Morris Rocky Mountain Collection. Always desirable. Abies concolor 'Z-mark' No info. Across the pond. Abies koreana 'Blue Magic' If no terminal dominance is developed the plant will be a flat spreading. Abies koreana 'Golden Beskid ' Tough to find in States???. Abies koreana 'Rodzyngold...same Picea abies 'Fritsche' Bright green foliage...full sun to some shade tolerance. Picea abies 'Perry's Gold' Mine doesn't burn in full sun. Picea engelmannii 'Blue Magoo' A striking upright Picea engelmannii 'Compacta' Forms an attractive blue pillar in the landscape. Picea glauca 'Daisy White' Striking white foliage in spring. Picea Glauca 'Fort Ann' For people who want something different although after they see it they usually want something a little less different. Picea mariana 'Aureovarigata' Specimen plant. Picea orientalis 'Daureas' Flushes yellow in spring. Plant is a conical upright. Picea orientalis 'Iseli Seedling' Needs to be screened for two years to acclimate. Picea orientalis 'Spring Frost' Needs a little shade. Hard to find. Picea pungens 'Blaukissen' Slow grower...1 inch...desirable. Picea pungens ''Filip's Blue Compact' Try and find it... Picea pungens 'Gebelle's Golden Spring' One to have...go for it. Picea pungens 'Lundeby's Dwarf' Iseli...very nice. Only full sunlight. A desirable pungens. Picea pungens 'Maigold' In spring bright white on old blue foliage. Upright conical plant to 20 ft and beyond. Picea pungens Spring Ghost In spring new growth emerges a wonderful cream white which covers the entire tree. By June the white needles evolve to blue-green again. Picea pungens 'Waldbrunn' Color and form are both unique when compared with other compact versions of the Colorado spruce. Picea pungens 'Walter Glen' Where to find??? Picea pungens 'Wendy' excellent alternative to Picea glauca Conica Picea pungens 'Wisconsin Cream' An unusual upright evergreen conifer with cream-white needles. Tolerates full sun surprisingly well. Pinus cembra 'Silver Whisper' White striped dark green needles that produce a silvery effect. Pinus contorta 'Chief Joseph' Make sure it is not grafted on sylvestris under stock. Pinus contorta 'Taylor's Sunburst' Rare in the trade due to propagating difficulties. Pinus Densiflora 'Gold Ghost' Bright yellow with green margins in the spring. Sustaining its beauty, it holds this brilliant color throughout the fall months. Pinus koraiensis 'Silveray' Silver-blue needles - more blue than the type. Makes a wonderful landscape specimen. Pinus koraiensis 'Winton' A broad pyramid bushy dwarf. Nice color. Pinus mugo 'Fastigiata Aurea' Vigorous upright growth and yellow winter foliage. Pinus parviflora (Glauca) Narrow upright when young, widening with age. Silver-green curved foliage. Love mine. Pinus parviflora 'Glauca Brevifolia' Has short, up-curved, bluish-green needles and many persistent cones at a young age making this a very showy pine. Pinus parviflora 'Goldilocks' A bright yellow foliage Japanese White Pine. Small dwarf with bright yellow leaves. Plant will grow about 6 inches a year. The color is mango yellow not a light yellow. Pinus parviflora 'Templehof' Compared appearance wise to Pinus parviflora 'Glauca' but has a reputation of being a stronger grower. Pinus strobus 'Blue Shag' This light bluish green, small to medium shrub has a formal rounded to slightly broad-rounded habit. Pinus strobus 'Sea Urchin' Stands out as one of the finest of the very small selections of Pinus strobus. Its short, soft needles display more blue than other types. Pinus x 'Forest Sky' A dense, upright evergreen conifer. Often adorned with long ornamental cones. Pinus x schwerinii 'Wiethorst' Famous for ornamental cones at a young age. Tsuga canadensis 'Moon Frost' White new growth that slowly fades to a darker green with white tones, great contrasting colors are what makes this conifer. Tsuga canadensis 'Summer Snow. New white growth on old green foliage. This shrub will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and is best pruned in late winter once the threat of extreme cold has passed.

Thanks guys - you're the greatest! I was so surprised to see your posts this morning. Thinking that I was being ignored, I did do a little research on my own last week and will be placing an order for several little "jewels" this week. Picea orientalis 'Prof. Langner' is on my list, Picea pungens 'Blue Pearl' I had on order and it arrived last week (LOVELY plant - and also in that order was a Pinus uncinata 'Xenie' which I feel in love with at first sight), Abies lasiocarpa I'm not real sure about as I'm reading that Abies prefer cooler climates, Picea orientalis 'Tom Thumb Gold' I already have, Taxus baccata 'Green Diamond' will definitely go on my list, and yes, I have a Juniperus squamata 'Blue Star' which was actually one of my first conifer purchases. I also have Thuja occidentalis 'Golden Tuffet' which is one of my very favorites. I have several Picea on my order list as well as Pinus banksiana and Pseudotsuga menziesii. I can't wait for them to arrive! For some reason I haven't had any luck with the Cryptomeria - they tend to burn in our full sun - maybe I should try one in part sun and see if I can turn that luck around. I am very excited about this "mini" venture and looking forward to getting in the garden for fall planting. Will post pictures when I have a section ready for viewing. The area I'm working on is very long but a little narrow and it will certainly take more than one planting season to complete it (especially since I have things to remove before more can go in). Again, many, many thanks and keep those wonderful photos coming for the viewing pleasure of those of us in the US who would never see them any other way - HAPPY GARDENING!! Glenda