So, we're talking pretty much full shade? Astilbe is good. Some hostas have attractive and *fragrant* flowers. How about clethra, tiarella/foamflower, solomon's seal, false s.s., trollius/globe flower, primula/primrose, lamium, trilium, hepatica, woodrue, Jack-in-the-pulpit, Virginia bluebells, bergenia, meadowsweet, monkshood, leopardsbane, Dutchman's breeches.

Here's some other suggestions:

Perennials for the Shade

Rozanne geranium grows for me in semi-shade. Forget-Me-Nots, Varigated Brunnera, Astrantia, Helen's Flower, Toad lilies, Husker Red Penstemon, and Golden Alexander do well there also. The shrub Euonymus fortunei 'Moonshadow' doesn't flower-but it sure adds some punch in a shady spot.

I always make a point of planting some annual impations in shady spots for summer long color as well.

*laugh* when we do GW local garden tours you need to come see mine! My gardens are mostly in shade and I have just about everything in them. Scarlet columbine (or any columbine for that matter) loves dappled light. Foam flower, trilliums, and all the others that leaveswave mentioned are pretty much excellent (I have most of them) I wouldn't recommend Jack-in-the-Pulpet for the simple reason that unless that's all you want in an area that's all you'll get eventually- it spreads very aggressively, same with lilly of the valley.

-Marie

Balsem (Impatiens Balsemenia) is an annual in the impatients family that is taller than your average impatient that naturalizes well, will self seed and produces many blooms all season long- and is not as tall as Jewel weed-
For a tall dramatic blue flowering plant- I found I like the season long bloomer, annual shoo fly plant (Nicandra) in partial to mostly shade.
Many Columbines, foxglove, astranthia and Cimicifuga will grow well in partial to mostly shade- even lillies do well in partial shade.
For a very fragrant annual, full season shade bloomer- try nicotiana- they really put out their perfumy scent in the evenings.
Violas- Blood Root- Uvularia - Virginia Blue Bells- Celedine or Wood Poppies- Hesperis/Dames Rocket, Pulmonaria, many penstemmons and campanula also do well in part shade. There are many more- I am sure- but these are what I remember from my yard-
Julie

Lugularia ( the rocket) is one of my favorite, large leaf with tall yellow spike,, very dense shade. (Desdomone) tall deep yellow daisy like flowers, darker large leaf..E-mail me if you want , i'll send you a picture..

Just dropping by so I thought I would offer some suggestions. My shade garden consists of ferns, hostas, bergenia, yew, Japanese maple, vinca, white nancy lamium, aurea lamium, clematis, kiwi vine. Obviously the clematis and kiwi vine are to the back of the bed, on trellises against the house. To add some flower color, I do as meeperx does, tuck in some annual impatiens here and there. I find the white ones are the most noticeable, especially when viewed from far. I think the reason for that is that when you are standing in the sun but the flower bed is in the shade, there's sort of glare that makes things more difficult to see in the shade.

Anyways, as far as annuals go, lamium has done okay for me in a few hours of sun, pansies have done quite well and I also like the different foliage colors of coleus.

I tried impatiens balfouri in the shade last year. Beautiful plant, though it definitely gets big so you have to give it space (mine grew about 2 feet high and wide.) The only negative is it supposedly self sows everywhere (but I hear they are easy enough to remove. We'll see if mine have any offspring, last year was it's first year.)

Glen

Sorry, meant to say "as far as annuals go, lobelia has done fairly well", not lamium. I do realize that lamium is a perennial :)

Also, I should mention that my shade flower bed gets 3 hours of sun so that's probably why I've been able to grow things like pansy, lobelia, and clematis (hagley hybrid). The only drawback I think was that the clematis took a couple more years to be able to fully fill up the small trellis. Perhaps it would have established itself quicker in a spot with more sun.

Glen

oh, shade plants...a subject near and dear to my heart seeing as all I have here in my little woods is shade! LOL
Here are some of what I have:

Ligularia "The Rocket"
Cimicifuga Racemosa
Tiarella
Penstemon huskers Red
Astilbe
Foxglove
Japanese painted fern
Bergenia Winter Glow
Columbine
Bleeding Heart
Hydrangea "Annabelle"
Viburnum
Trillium (spring flower)
Large Flowered Bellwort (spring flower)
Hepatica (spring flower)
Bloodroot (spring flower)
Wood Anemone (spring flower)
Primrose
Tradescantia
Calla Lily
Pulmonaria
Jacobs Ladder
Coral Bells
Brunnera

I have also had really good luck in my shade with Delphinium, Adenophora, Monarda, Eupatorium, Plume Poppy, and even Daylily if it is light shade.

Linda

I too have had success with primrose, Jacob's ladder, globe flower, coral bell, astilbe, foxglove, daylilies and "The Rocket". "The Rocket" has really taken a beating, it was here when we bought the house and I didn't know it. Piled all kinds of leave and debris on top of it and probably ran it over with the four wheeler quite a few times! It still looks beautiful.

I would also suggest using impatients...the double impatiens look like mini roses and bloom forever.

Thanks for all the suggestions everyone. I'm getting my list together. Does anyone grow sweet woodruff? How invasive is it. I saw a picture of it lining a border on the UMN extension website, and it looks perfect for what I want at the front of my north bed, but I don't want to find it growing in the lawn!!!

A small shade area I have always gets pots of begonia and shade loving herbs in brighly colored pots.
It's on the side of my gazebo. I have a large copper shelved planter nailed to the outside wall. It's from this that the begonias, fuschias and herbs sit above missouri primros, The Rocket..I love those, brunnera, some smaller blue hosta.
The red, orange and bright yellow of the begonia really draw the eye to this area.
I'm very fortunate to have a husband that works in metal.