25 Best Shade Plants to Transform Your Garden in 2025

Featuring rich, purple blooms, the Vinca Minor periwinkle vine provides a burst of color to your garden from late spring into the fall months. Shade-tolerant and hardy, this beautiful plant is great for gardening beginners. They thrive in USDA Hardiness Zones 4 through 8.

Best used as a ground cover in sparse areas of your garden, this variety of bugleweed boasts spiky, violet flowers with dark green and brown foliage. Because this shade-loving plant is so dense, it helps to control stubborn weeds that love to pop through. Plant in USDA Zones 4 through 9.

This deer-resistant plant—also known as astilbe—grows primarily vertically, making it a great space-saving variety for smaller gardens. The bright, cream blooms are soft and fluffy, adding a dimensional texture to your landscaping. Plant in USDA Zones 3 through 7.

This shade-loving plant is the epitome of fall color. The vibrant orange and red foliage on cherry heuchera keeps its color throughout the long growing season, even in full shade. This perennial will also survive through mild to moderate winters. Plant in USDA Zones 4 through 9.

This shade-loving plant erupts with silver-blue, heart-shaped blooms whether it’s planted in full sun or full shade. Siberian bugloss is ideal for those looking for deer-resistant plant varieties and is known for its hardy nature. Plant in USDA Zones 3 through 8 for best results.

For those who live in a cold climate or experience harsh winters, blue oat grass is a great bet for year-round color and interest. It never loses its silver-blue hue, no matter the temperature, and you don’t have to worry about it getting too much shade. This is a great option for those looking to add more ornamental grasses to their landscaping. Plant in USDA Zones 4 through 8.

This biennial, shade-loving plant is often grown as an ornamental plant because of its vivid flowers. Foxglove’s bright colors attract both people and animals (including pollinators like bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds), but it’s important to remember that all parts of a foxglove plant are extremely toxic and poisonous. Plant in USDA Zones 4 through 9.

Hardy and colorful, primrose flowers are popular among gardeners all across the country due to their ability to thrive in both hot and cold climates. Primrose appreciates mild morning sun but does its best in partial to full shade. Plant in USDA Zones 3 through 8.

Gaining in popularity as an alternative to impatiens, browallia is a beautiful annual that comes in shades of periwinkle blue, white, and violet. Its mounding foliage makes it an attractive choice for shady baskets, window boxes, and containers, and it can grow to reach about a foot wide and tall. Plant in USDA Zones 9 through 11.

Hostas range from a petite four inches to as big as six feet across, ensuring there’s a suitable choice for every garden. These shade-loving plants are great for adding beautiful texture and greenery— just be aware that these perennials are a favorite of deer and rabbits. Plant in USDA Zones 3 through 9.

If you’re looking for a vining annual that works equally well in sun and shade, a sweet potato vine is the answer. This pretty plant comes in shades of purple, burgundy, and chartreuse and looks fabulous spilling over the sides of containers and window boxes. Plant in USDA Zones 9 through 11.

Begonias do well in a variety of conditions, including full shade. Depending on the variety, they can range from six inches to three feet tall and six to 18 inches wide. Some types are grown primarily for their striking variegated foliage. Plant in USDA Zones 9 through 11, but can be grown as annuals in colder zones.

Ligularia, which is sometimes called the leopard plant, has large, showy leaves and bright flowers in shades of yellow. This shade-loving perennial is especially happy in boggy or wet conditions, where it can grow anywhere from three to eight feet tall and two to four feet wide. Plant in USDA Zones 4 through 9.

These happy-faced flowers tolerate full sun in the spring and fall, but come summer, they’ll need part shade. They often die back in hot weather and revive when things cool down. They’re annuals, but some types self-seed and may appear again next spring. Plant in USDA Zones 5 through 9.

Also known as bishop’s hat because of its flowers’ unique shape, epimedium thrives in partial to full shade and blooms from mid-to-late spring. This perennial can grow between eight and 12 inches tall and 12 to 36 inches wide. It’s a great ground cover for shady spots. Plant in USDA Zones 3 through 9.

Often used as a ground cover, this perennial is known for its tiny flowers that bloom in the spring. It also has charming heart-shaped foliage with white variegation, making it a delightful shade-loving plant whether it’s in bloom or not. Plant in USDA Zones 3 through 8.

Also known as bleeding heart (you can see why!), these charming perennials are a must-have in any shade garden. Depending on the variety, they can grow between six inches and three feet tall and one and three feet wide. Plant in USDA Zones 3 through 9.

This pretty shade-loving plant with a fun name blooms in midsummer and prefers moist yet well-drained soil. Expect spiderwort to grow between six inches and three feet tall, depending on the variety. Plant in USDA Zones 4 through 9

This gorgeous perennial looks delicate but is tough as nails. Also known as the Lenten rose, hellebores bloom in late winter to early spring, around the time of Lent. It’s available in a profusion of colors ranging from pure white to deep pink and near-black. Depending on the variety, you can expect a hellebore plant to grow between one and three feet tall and wide. Plant in USDA Zones 3 through 9.

There’s a reason why ferns are often found in moist, shady forests: They love light to moderate shade. These perennials come in an array of lovely, lacy forms and spread into a beautiful ground cover over time. They can reach up to a few feet tall, depending on the variety. Plant in USDA Zones 3 through 8.