Need suggestions for perennial flower for full shaded area i

[Joshua]

Need suggestions for perennial flower for full shaded area in Zone 3-4.

Live in Central MN, on border of zone 3B/4A. I have a flower bed up against the north side of my house that gets full shade (maybe gets 10 min of sun as the sun rises and sets each day)

I am Looking for a perennial plant/flower that will grow good with little or no maintenance required once planted.
something colorful would be a big plus.

What would you suggest ?

[rainbowgardener]

For low maintenance, I think best is to select native plants. They are adapted to your conditions. Once established, they will be very easy care. That little sun is challenging to almost anything, but here are suggestions for native shade plants that can handle very little sun (2 hrs or less):

Spreading dogbane, Bitterroot: fragrant pink flowers in spring, bees and butterflies

Native columbine, Aquilegia canadiensis: Showy red/yellow flowers, flowers attract hummingbirds, bees, butterflies, seeds are food for finches and indigo buntings. It is reported that Native Americans rubbed the crushed seeds on the hands of men as a love charm. There are also lots of hybrid columbines bred for larger, showier flowers in a variety of color combinations.

Bluebell bellflower: This is the native species Campanula rotundifolia There are lots of hybrid campanulas. Pretty blue flowers.

Solomon’s seal/ false solomon’s seal: Spring ephemerals (disappear by summer) with pretty white flowers. There is a hybrid solomon’s seal, with white variegations on the leaves, that is much longer lasting in the garden and makes a very pretty shade garden flower, with arching stems. It spreads nicely in my shade garden with little to no direct sun.

Rock polypody: Native creeping fern, that unlike most ferns is drought tolerant. forms dense mats and will cover mossy rocks. Fronds are small, leathery and evergreen.

Unless you go with the commercial hybrids, these won't be found at your neighborhood big box. You would need to go to a native plant nursery (it is really a good thing to support these!

This is a list of MN native plant suppliers

http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/gardens/nati ... liers.html

Here's one that looked nice
http://www.outbacknursery.com/

For color in shade, often times you are best off to look for plants with colorful foliage. Shade plants often aren't really showy flowered and the flowers only last a few weeks. Foliage lasts all season. Heuchera (coral bells) and tiarella (foam flower) are native plants that have been hybridized to have very colorful variegated leaves in lots of different color combination. And there is now a hybrid of the two, heucherella, which is similar.

[shadylane]

Rainbow those were great suggestions given I must say. It perked up some enthusiasm on my shade area of the house lawn. Great tips. Hope Joshua finds this again.