Plants that do well in shady areas?

[Queen of Poop]

Impatience is a good shade plant and it has many different colored flowers.

[.sarah]

Impatience is a good shade plant and it has many different colored flowers.

I was going to say Impatients also. They have been one of the only plants I could get to grow in my yard. Marigolds also have done pretty well in the shade for me.

[Queen of Poop]

More shade loving plants:

bacopa hybrid
begonia
browallia
coleus
mimulus
pansy viola tricolor
viola tricolor

Note that the pansy and viola will self seed and you'll have them coming up year after year, even though they are annuals. I personally love the violas, just like pansy's but smaller, their cute flower faces are so tiny, colorful and beautiful.

And NONE of these are groundcovers.

[smokey the elder]

You can go with plants with striking foliage. Hostas, caladiums, elephant ears, black taro, Persian shield, Chocolate plant are all ones I've had success with. Deer don't seem to bother the tropicals (elephant ears, taro and caladiums) or the chocolate plant. Pachysandra can be invasive but grows fairly slowly.

Good luck!

[jazzcat]

Are you looking for something to come back year after year or are you looking for annuals?

Some good annuals are:
Impatience
Begonias
Coleus
Caladiums

Some good perrenials are:
Hosta
Hydranga
Astilbe
Bleeding Heart

I've read that Daylillies will tolerate shade but the ones I have in shady areas don't bloom as well as the ones in full sun.