One of the most difficult growing conditions for perennials is dry shade. Not only are the plants that grow in dry shade already stressed from not having much light, but they also have to compete with other large plants for soil moisture.
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Hosta 'Lone Star' PP 35,234
Item #: 18263
Zones: 3a to 7b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 26" tall
Culture: Light Shade
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 3 qt. (2.8 L)
Regular price $0.00Regular priceUnit price perThis plant is available for JLBG Members only.
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Hosta 'My Fair Lady' PP 35,524
Item #: 18264
Zones: 3a to 8b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 17" tall
Culture: Light Shade
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 2 qt. (1.9 L)
Regular price $23.20Regular priceUnit price per$29.00Sale price $23.20Sale -
Hosta 'Paradigm'
Item #: 3012
Zones: 3a to 8b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 20" tall
Culture: Light Shade
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 2 qt. (1.9 L)
Regular price $23.20Regular priceUnit price per$29.00Sale price $23.20Sale -
Hosta 'Praying Hands'
Item #: 4605
Zones: 3a to 8b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 14" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Light Shade
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 2 qt. (1.9 L)
Regular price $0.00Regular priceUnit price perThis plant is available for JLBG Members only.
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Hosta 'Rainbow's End'
Item #: 6035
Zones: 3a to 8b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 4" tall
Culture: Light Shade
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 2 qt. (1.9 L)
Regular price $29.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Hosta 'Sound of Music' PP 35,563
Item #: 18451
Zones: 3a to 9b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 30" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Shade
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 3 qt. (2.8 L)
Regular price $28.00Regular priceUnit price per$35.00Sale price $28.00Sale -
Sold outHosta 'Striptease'
Item #: 1560
Zones: 3a to 8b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 20" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Light Shade
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 3 qt. (2.8 L)
Regular price $29.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Hosta 'Sum and Substance'
Item #: 1102
Zones: 3a to 8b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 20" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Light Shade
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 3 qt. (2.8 L)
Regular price $29.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Hosta 'Waterslide' PP 30,303
Item #: 12697
Zones: 3a to 8b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 16" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Light Shade
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 2 qt. (1.9 L)
Regular price $23.20Regular priceUnit price per$29.00Sale price $23.20Sale -
Iris cristata 'Eco Orchid Giant'
Item #: 17856
Zones: 3a to 8b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 5" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Shade
Origin: United States
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $25.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Iris cristata 'Merle's Ruby'
Item #: 10193
Zones: 3a to 8b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 8" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Light Shade
Origin: United States
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $25.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Iris cristata 'Powder Blue Giant'
Item #: 2592
Zones: 3a to 8b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 12" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Shade
Origin: United States
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $20.00Regular priceUnit price per$25.00Sale price $20.00Sale -
Iris cristata 'Tennessee White'
Item #: 8476
Zones: 3a to 9b
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 6" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Light Shade
Origin: United States
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $20.00Regular priceUnit price per$25.00Sale price $20.00Sale -
Sold outIris dabashanensis
Item #: 16971
Zones: 5a to 7b, at least
Dormancy: Evergreen
Height: 8" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Light Shade
Origin: China
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $29.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Iris lazica
Item #: 2523
Zones: 7b to 9b, possibly colder
Dormancy: Evergreen
Height: 12" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Light Shade
Origin: Caucasus Mountains, Mediterranean Europe, Turkey
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $27.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Liriope gracilis 'Mop Top'
Item #: 11801
Zones: 6a to 9b, guessing
Dormancy: Evergreen
Height: 15" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Light Shade
Origin: China
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $20.00Regular priceUnit price per$25.00Sale price $20.00Sale -
Liriope minor 'Gotemba Gold'
Item #: 18293
Zones: 6a to 10a
Dormancy: Evergreen
Height: 3" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Shade
Origin: Japan
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $18.40Regular priceUnit price per$23.00Sale price $18.40Sale -
Liriope muscari 'Okina'
Item #: 3542
Zones: 6a to 10b
Dormancy: Evergreen
Height: 10" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Light Shade
Origin: China, Japan, Taiwan
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $25.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Liriope muscari 'Peedee Ingot'
Item #: 3096
Zones: 6a to 10b
Dormancy: Evergreen
Height: 18" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Light Shade
Origin: China, Japan, Taiwan
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $20.00Regular priceUnit price per$25.00Sale price $20.00
Sale -
Liriope platyphylla 'Peter's Pick'
Item #: 13042
Zones: 5a to 10b, guessing
Dormancy: Evergreen
Height: 9" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Light Shade
Origin: China
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $20.80Regular priceUnit price per$26.00Sale price $20.80Sale -
Lychnis 'Orange Sherbet'
Item #: 7907
Zones: 5a to 9b, guessing
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 24" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Light Shade
Origin: China
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $19.20Regular priceUnit price per$24.00Sale price $19.20
Sale -
Lychnis senno 'Once in a Vermillion'
Item #: 10728
Zones: 6b to 9b, guessing
Dormancy: Winter
Height: 20" tall
Culture: Part Sun to Shade
Origin: China
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $24.00Regular priceUnit price per -
Lycoris x albiflora 'Yellow Swallowtail'
Item #: 12815
Zones: 6b to 9a
Dormancy: Summer
Height: 22" tall
Culture: Sun to Part Sun
Origin: China
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $22.40Regular priceUnit price per$28.00Sale price $22.40Sale -
Lycoris x caldwellii 'Eye Scream'
Item #: 16566
Zones: 4b to 8b, at least
Dormancy: Summer
Height: 30" tall
Culture: Sun to Light Shade
Origin: Hybrid
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
Regular price $30.00Regular priceUnit price per
More Information About Dry Shade Plants
One of the most difficult conditions in the garden for plants is dry shade. Not only are dry shade plants already stressed from not having much light, but they also have to compete with other large plants for soil moisture. It takes a special plant to be a dry shade plant. We have assembled a list of plants for dry shade below that tolerate dry shade well in our climate. For those in cooler climates, your list would be quite a bit longer, since the hot daytime temperatures aren't as severe.
Keep in mind that just because a perennial plant is tolerant of dry shade doesn't mean that it will grow forever without adequate moisture. A good rule of thumb is that plants with smaller, thicker foliage can survive the longest in dry shade conditions. Also, the more established the plants are, the better they can tolerate drought. In our trials, plants like cyclamen, danae, ruscus, arum and dracunculus top the list of dry shade plants. Right behind are ophiopogon, liriope, sarcococca, hedera, aspidistra, sabal palms, tetrapanax, clumping bamboos, and aucuba. Hellebores, rohdea, and pachysandra are also drought-tolerant, but less so than the first two lists.
Some of our favorite plants for dry shade include:
- Aspidistra (Cast Iron Plants) - One of our all-time favorites. Deer-resistant and shade-tolerant, there is a reason we have over 200 different varieties.
- Cyclamen (Hardy Cyclamen) - These small fall/winter growing perennials absolutely thrive in the shady, dry conditions found underneath large deciduous trees and conifers.
- Danae (Poet's Laurel) - A slow-growing evergreen shrub with amazing shade tolerance.
- Liriope (Monkey Grass) - This drought-tolerant grass-like perennial is actually a member of the lily family but we love using it as an ornamental grass.
- Ophiopogon (Mondo Grass) - A wonderful ornamental grass with many dwarf and variegated forms to choose from.
- Pyrrosia (Tongue Fern) - Deer-resistant and drought-tolerant, these un-fern-like ferns make great accents at the edge of a dry shade garden where they can get partial sun.
- Ruscus (Butcher's Broom) - Another evergreen choice with great drought tolerance. They also produce bright red berries that add a splash of garden to your shade garden.
- Sarcococca (Sweetbox) - An evergreen dry-shade perennial that produces small, fragrant blooms in the winter when other dry-shade perennials are dormant.
Also, see all of our shade tolerant plants or just the wet shade plants.
Check out our article entitled 'Gardening in the Shade' that describes many cool plants for dry shade.