Bigroot geranium is a tough, shade-tolerant plant that doesn't mind heat or drought. It produces pink, purple, or white flowers in spring and has woodsy-scented foliage. Deer and rabbits tend to avoid it.
Toad lily adds elegance to shade gardens with its unique, orchid-like flowers. It's easy to grow and offers large lavender flowers in the 'Tojen' variety. It thrives in full to part shade and evenly moist, well-drained soil.
Ajuga is a tough groundcover with attractive leaves and blue flowers in spring. It's low-maintenance and spreads outward with creeping stems.
Hosta is a showy, easy-to-grow shade perennial that comes in a variety of sizes and shapes. It offers leaves in shades of green, blue, white, chartreuse, and gold, with many cultivars boasting pretty variegation.
Old-fashioned bleeding heart is a favorite shade perennial with finely cut foliage and pink or white heart-shaped flowers.
Yellow corydalis is a hardworking shade perennial that blooms from late spring to frost. It has attractive gray-green leaves and clusters of yellow flowers.
Lungwort is an attractive shade plant with silvery, lung-shape spots on its foliage. It produces clusters of pink, white, or blue flowers in spring