10 Best Shade Perennials | TN Nursery

10 Exceptional Shade Perennials to Enhance Your Garden: Exploring Beyond Virginia Bluebells and Lily of the Valley

Shade gardening offers a unique opportunity to cultivate a tranquil and enchanting atmosphere in your outdoor space. While iconic shade perennials like Virginia Bluebells and Lily of the Valley have charmed garden enthusiasts for generations, there is a world of diverse and captivating options to explore.

This comprehensive guide will delve into ten extraordinary shade perennials that can add depth, color, and texture to your shaded garden areas. From vibrant blooms to elegant foliage, these plants promise to infuse your landscape with beauty and grace.


Bleeding Heart (Dicentra spectabilis): The Bleeding Heart is a perennial favorite for shade gardens, celebrated for its heart-shaped pendant flowers that dangle from arching stems. Blooming in shades of pink and white, this plant adds a touch of romance to shaded corners. It thrives in consistently moist, well-draining soil and can become the centerpiece of a charming woodland-themed garden.

Astilbe (Astilbe spp.): Astilbes are renowned for their feathery plumes of flowers that rise above fern-like foliage. These perennials are available in various colors, from soft pinks to rich purples, and they thrive in moisture-retentive soils. Their height and texture variations make them an excellent choice for layering in shaded borders.

Coral Bells (Heuchera spp.): Coral Bells are valued for their stunning foliage that ranges in color from deep purples and greens to vibrant oranges and reds. The delicate bell-shaped flowers that appear on tall stems add a touch of charm to the overall aesthetic. These plants can tolerate varying degrees of shade and can be used as ground covers or accents in shady spots.

Japanese Forest Grass : Japanese Forest Grass brings a touch of elegance to shaded areas with its gracefully arching blades of golden or variegated foliage. This low-growing grass forms beautiful cascading clumps, creating a soothing movement in the garden. Its sun and partial shade adaptability make it versatile for various garden designs.

Foamflower (Tiarella spp.): Foamflowers are known for their delicate, frothy flower spikes that emerge in shades of white, pink, or purple. The deeply cut, lobed foliage adds texture to shady borders, and these plants are particularly well-suited for woodland or naturalistic garden designs.

Hosta (Hosta spp.): Hosta's are among the most beloved shade perennials, prized for their diverse foliage colors, shapes, and sizes. From blue-greens to golds and variegated patterns, Hosta's offer endless possibilities for creative garden designs. Their robust nature and adaptability to shade make them reliable choices for shaded areas.

Jacob's Ladder (Polemonium caeruleum): Jacob's Ladder boasts elegant shades of blue, pink, or white. Its finely divided foliage adds a delicate touch to the garden. This perennial prefers moist, well-draining soil and can flourish in partial to full shade.

Ligularia (Ligularia spp.): Ligularias are recognized for their bold foliage and striking flower spikes that rise above the leaves. These plants create a focal point in shady landscapes with their large, kidney-shaped leaves and golden-yellow daisy-like flowers. They thrive in consistently moist soil.

Trillium (Trillium spp.): Trilliums are native woodland plants that produce exquisite, three-petaled flowers in various shades of white, pink, and red. These perennials often exhibit a captivating marbled foliage pattern, adding to their allure. Trilliums prefer well-draining soil in a shaded or dappled light environment.

Embrace the diversity of shade-loving plants 

These ten exceptional shade perennials we've explored – from the graceful Bleeding Heart to the vibrant Ligularia – offer a rich tapestry of colors, textures, and forms that can elevate the aesthetic of your shaded garden spaces. Whether you want to create a woodland oasis, a serene retreat, or a visually captivating border, these perennials are poised to inspire and transform your garden into a beautiful sanctuary. Embrace the diversity of shade-loving plants and embark on a journey of creativity, design, and botanical wonderment.

Shade-loving plants are an excellent addition to any garden or indoor space, adding depth, texture, and a calming atmosphere. These plants thrive in areas with limited direct sunlight, making them ideal for those shaded corners, under trees, or spaces where natural light is scarce. Whether you have a shady yard, a balcony with filtered light, or a room with minimal windows, there are numerous pleasing shade-loving plants to choose from.

Ferns are classic shade-loving plants known for their delicate fronds and graceful presence. They come in various sizes and shapes, from the feathery Boston Fern to the bold and architectural Bird's Nest Fern.

Hosta's are another popular choice for shade gardens. With their striking foliage ranging from vibrant greens to deep blues, Hosta's offer a diverse palette. These perennials thrive in moist, shady conditions, bringing a lush and rich look to shaded areas.

For those seeking flowers in their shaded spaces, Astilbes are a fantastic option. Their plume-like flowers in shades of pink, white, and red add color to any shade garden. Astilbes prefer consistently moist soil and can brighten up even the darkest corners. If you're looking for ground cover, consider Ajuga or Lamium. These low-growing plants spread quickly and create a carpet of colorful foliage, helping to suppress weeds and add visual interest to the ground level.

Remember that shade-loving plants can tolerate lower light conditions but still require indirect light to grow and thrive

Proper care, including watering, soil maintenance, and occasional fertilizing, will ensure your shade-loving plants remain pleasing and healthy year-round. By carefully selecting and placing these plants, you can transform dimly lit areas into beautiful, vibrant spaces that evoke a sense of tranquility and natural beauty.

 

Foam Flower - TN Nursery

Foam Flower

Foam Flower is a perennial plant with delicate, frothy spikes of white or pinkish blooms and deeply lobed, attractive foliage resembling foamy. It is a beautiful and beneficial plant with numerous advantages in landscaping projects. This herbaceous perennial belongs to the Saxifragaceae family and is admired for its delicate bloom spikes and attractive foliage. One of the primary benefits of incorporating it into landscaping is its captivating appearance. Foam Flower (Tiarella cordifolia), the Allegheny, is a gorgeous spring wildflower with feathery white spires that look lovely in sun-dappled gardens. With time, its foliage will form colonies with an excellent ground cover in shady spots. Where Foam Flower Can Be Found  It is native to wooded areas in eastern North America. This perennial can be found on seeps and stream banks, by creeks, in clearings, and under maple, hemlock, and white cedar trees. Along the eastern coast, it starts blooming in mid-March and continues to blossom through April. It owes its name to the sprays of tiny white to pinkish blooms that cover its three- to four-inch-long racemes. These delicate blossoms float around the tips of their long, graceful stems, which rise one to three feet above mounds of low-growing leaves. After it fades, the plant's foliage stays lush and glossy. The plant's bright green leaves grow up to four inches wide and usually have three to five lobes. The leaves' shape, color, and pattern can vary depending on the cultivar. They may stay evergreen in warmer climates, but their leaves and rosettes often turn red and bronze in the fall when temperatures cool down. Foam Flower Loves Shade Tiarella cordifolia brings soft, gentle intrigue to shady spots in your landscape. These blooms work beautifully in ornamental, wildflower, and woodland gardens beside ferns and blooms like Solomon's seal, dwarf crested iris, and bluebells. It adds a magical quality to small and mass plantings, grows under trees, and suits spacious pots and planters well. It also makes a lovely border or ground cover. It can be propagated by dividing and replanting the roots in late fall or starting from seed indoors, around ten weeks before the last spring freeze. Once the frost has parted, you can plant the seedling outside. It lures bees and other pollinators to your landscape, making them a valuable addition. Some small mammals eat its seeds for nourishment. Foam Flower Adds Whimsical Charm To Your Garden  Planting foam flowers will add whimsical charm to your springtime garden. Once established in your landscape, you can enjoy their showy blooms for years.

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hosta plant - TN Nursery

Hosta

Hostas are shade-loving perennials known for their large, heart-shaped, and often variegated leaves and spikes of bell-shaped flowers, making them popular choices for garden borders and landscaping in low-light areas. They are renowned for their lush foliage and graceful appearance, which offer many benefits when incorporated into landscaping designs. These versatile perennials have gained popularity for their ability to enhance outdoor spaces with their aesthetic appeal, adaptability, and ease of maintenance. Hosta is an attractive herbaceous plant that can grow up to 4 feet in height, although a height of 18 inches is more common. There are several species of them, each with slight differences in leaf color. Each species has a different bloom, making exceptional focal points in any garden. Hosta Has Stunning Leaves The type seen most commonly in the United States is the "Keepsake." The charming green leaves ringed with yellow accents are popular because of their hardiness in different climates and the beautiful vistas they create in a garden. Sometimes, the lighter color rings are shades of white rather than yellow, but they don't lose any eye-catching effects. They have leaves of a single color, usually dark green. All their leaves are sturdy and ribbed, even if they're longer and tapered rather than cheerfully oval. Most versions have pretty purple or white flowers that bloom in the early summer through the beginning of fall. The flower buds form in the middle of spring and are generally the same color as the flowers. Even when they're just budding, they are beautiful plants that complement everything else in the garden. Once the buds bloom, the flowers form trumpet, bell, or elongated pendulous shapes. Only one version of these flowers has a strong scent, called the "August Lily." It's a shy flower, blooming in the evening and closing up again by morning, so it'll brighten up any garden when the sun goes down. Hosta Does Great With Other Plants When they are surrounded by flowers of similar colors, such as California bluebells for the species with violet flowers or tuberose for the white-flowered species, it creates a breathtaking effect. Alternating the various species in concentric rings would increase their appeal and let them truly shine. This Hosta Is Good for Pollinators Hosta blooms are essential for pollinators, such as bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. The flowers provide nectar, and the leaves collect dew in the mornings, allowing these little creatures to drink while visiting the garden.

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Jacobs Ladder - TN Nursery

Jacobs Ladder

Jacobs Ladder is a perennial wildflower with pinnate leaves and delicate, bell-shaped, blue to purple flowers arranged along its arching stems, adding grace to shady garden settings. It is a charming and distinctive perennial plant that offers many benefits when incorporated into landscaping designs. With its delicate clusters of bell-shaped flowers and elegant fern-like foliage, it brings a touch of enchantment and versatility to outdoor spaces.   Jacobs Ladder is officially known as Polemonium reptans or simply Polemonium. It's part of the Polemoniaceae or Phlox family and is sometimes called the American Greek valerian, stairway to heaven, sweet root, and abscess root. Many of its names reference the arrangement of the flowers, which can look like stairs or a ladder. The name is also a reference to a biblical story in the book of Genesis where one of the characters, Jacob, has a dream about a stairway to heaven. The Polemonium is a herbaceous perennial that is native to North America. Jacobs Ladder Has Stunning Blooms  It is known for its bell-shaped blue or purple-colored flowers. The flowers usually grow to a height of about three-fourths of an inch and have five stamens. The plant tends to grow low to the ground, only reaching heights and widths of about one to two feet. This wildflower is known for its compounding leaves, meaning many leaves grow from one stem. Jacobs Ladder Brightness Up Landscapes  It accompanies trees and shrubs and can brighten up woodland and shade gardens, especially in the spring when its flowers bloom. They also perform well in perennial borders where many other plants are taller than the stairway to heaven. Jacobs Ladder Does Great Near Other Plants It can be planted next to different trees, shrubs, and flowers. Some beneficial companion plants include hostas, lady ferns, lungwort, foam flowers, and coral bells. It also thrives next to spring beauties, Virginia water leaves, and oriental poppies. Jacobs Ladder makes a great addition to flower and pollinator gardens. The bell-shaped flowers typically attract a wide variety of bees, butterflies, and birds, especially hummingbirds. These wildflowers can add color to many different types of outdoor gardens. Apartment and condo gardeners can enjoy planting it in pots or containers for balcony gardening or as an indoor plant to add color and life to their inside spaces.

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White Trillium - TN Nursery

White Trillium

White Trillium is a spring-blooming wildflower with large, white, three-petaled flowers and a distinctive, whorled arrangement of leaves, typically found in woodland habitats. It is prized for its large, showy, white flowers that bloom in the spring. The blooms can add a touch of elegance and beauty to your landscaping. It is a native North American wildflower that can provide several landscaping benefits. White Trillium, commonly known as the "wood lily "and the "large-flowered wake-robin," is a long-lived perennial wildflower that grows in eastern North America. Its bright to dark-green foliage blooms with large, colorful flowers in April, May, and June. The Habitat Of The Great White Trillium Its native range includes woodlands from Quebec to Georgia. In the wild, the plant grows in deciduous or mixed forested areas and on mesic slopes, as well as on rich rock ridges and in thickets and swamps. In Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains, the herb sometimes produces mixed populations of rose-pink and white blossoms. The Appearance Of White Trillium Its flowers have showy white blossoms that stretch more than 4" in diameter. Their long, pointed petals take on a pink tint over time. Each outwardly curved flower rises above three glossy, green, oval-shaped leaf-like bracts with a visibly veined appearance and pointed tips. A short rhizome that serves as the plant's stem branches out into peduncles aboveground that grow up to 15" tall. The plant commonly forms large, dense colonies that spread slowly as they age. Whether you're designing a woodland or wildflower garden or want to add a little texture to a shady spot, it will make a lovely addition to your landscape. These spring-blooming flowers complement hosta, ferns, iris, and jack-in-the-pulpit beautifully and make your yard a natural haven. Since they go dormant during the summer, pairing them with groundcover plants and perennials will help them flourish into autumn. White Trillium Is Great For Wildlife White Trillium serves as host plants for the American angle shades moth and the black-patched clips. During the blooming season, native and honey bees visit the blooms to pursue nectar. Ants eat the lipid-rich elaiosome surrounding the seeds, then drop them on the soil, where they grow into healthy new plants. The plant colonies can provide habitat and coverage for small mammals in places where the plant grows prolifically. White-tailed deer also enjoy grazing the blossoms and foliage.

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Perennials and Fern Package 50 Plants - TN Nursery

25 Ferns & 25 Perennials (Best Sellers) Chosen Perfectly For Your Zone

This delightful collection of 50 stunning plants transforms any outdoor space into a lush and vibrant oasis. This carefully curated selection is perfect for both seasoned gardeners and beginners. With our Perennials and Fern Package, you'll receive 50 handpicked plants, each chosen for its exceptional quality and visual appeal. Our expert horticulturists carefully nurtured and cultivated these plants, ensuring they are healthy, robust, and ready to thrive in your garden. PLEASE NOTE THAT THESE ARE A COLLECTION OF PLANTS, NOT SPECIFIC PLANT TYPES. WE CHOOSE TYPES THAT WORK BEST FOR YOUR ZONE ACCORDING TO YOUR ZIP CODE Our Perennials and Fern Package features 50 plants that return year after year, providing reliable, low-maintenance beauty for your garden. This package includes vibrant flowers like daisies, roses, lilies, and lavender, which attract butterflies and bees, enhancing your garden's ecosystem. They are known for their elegant foliage, thrive in shady areas and add tranquility with their intricate fronds. These plants are carefully chosen for complementary growth habits, textures, and color schemes, ensuring a harmonious and visually appealing display. Benefits of the Perennials and Fern Package: Long-lasting Beauty: These plants offer continuous vibrant colors and beautiful foliage throughout the seasons. Low-maintenance Gardening: Flowers require minimal care, saving time and effort. Attract Beneficial Wildlife: Create an inviting habitat for butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds. Versatile Planting Options: Suitable for various light conditions, perfect for sunny or shady spots. Captivating Textures: A mix of delicate fronds and lush flower petals adds visual interest. Easy-to-follow Care Instructions: Detailed guidance for novice and experienced gardeners. Create Beautiful Combinations: Experiment with different plant pairings for stunning displays. Enhance Shaded Areas: They thrive in shade, adding greenery to difficult spots. Promote Soil Health: Deep root systems improve soil structure and water retention. Eco-Friendly Landscaping: Supports healthy ecosystems and sustainable gardening practices. Tips for Maintaining Your Perennials and Ferns: Planting: Follow spacing and light requirements for each plant. Watering: Water deeply but infrequently to encourage strong root growth. Mulching: Apply a 2-3 inch layer of mulch to retain moisture and prevent weeds. Fertilizing: Use balanced slow-release fertilizer during the growing season. Pruning: Remove dead or damaged foliage and flowers regularly. Deadheading: Encourage continuous blooming by removing spent flowers. Pest and Disease Control: Monitor plants and use organic pest management methods. Winter Care: Clean the garden and mulch to protect them in winter. Regular Inspection: Check for signs of stress or nutrient deficiencies. Knowledge and Research: Stay informed about the specific care requirements of your plants. Why Choose Perennials and Fern Package TN Nursery offers a curated selection of high-quality plants hand-picked to meet your region's growing conditions. Our plants support healthy bee colonies, create butterflies' habitats, provide birds nutrition, and offer nectar for hummingbirds. With over four generations of expertise, we ensure vigorous, healthy plants and a harmonious garden display. Order your Perennials and Fern Package from TN Nursery today and transform your garden into a beautiful sanctuary.

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