Ground cover plants for under trees, along a north-facing wall and other shady spots where a lawn gives up. Each one grows in full shade and is suited to covering the ground.
50 plants from our verified database, by name. A plant is only listed when the data this list relies on is not in doubt. How our data is made
Hypericum calycinum 60 cm × 1.2 m after 10 years
A knee-high, semi-evergreen dwarf shrub that forms a dense, weed-suppressing stand with its underground runners and carries large golden-yellow…
Astilbe × arendsii 90 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
A splash of colour for shady, damp corners: feathery plumes in white, pink, red or purple rise above ferny foliage in early summer. Plant it only…
Waldsteinia ternata 15 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
A ground cover with glossy, three-part leaves like a strawberry that knits a dense carpet with its rooting runners, stays green through winter and…
Geranium macrorrhizum 40 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
A perennial that slowly spreads on thick rhizomes into a dense, weed-smothering carpet; its soft, lobed leaves are strongly aromatic when rubbed and…
Parthenocissus tricuspidata 10 m × 5 m after 10 years
A vigorous deciduous climber that clings on its own to brick, stone and concrete with adhesive pads at the tips of its tendrils, so it covers a…
Lonicera nitida 1.2 m × 1.5 m after 10 years
Box honeysuckle is a small-leaved, glossy evergreen shrub that grows fast and takes clipping at almost any time, so it is used for low hedges,…
Ajuga reptans 20 cm × 1 m after 10 years
A low ground cover that spreads quickly by runners and knits a dense carpet under trees and shrubs in part shade or shade, with spikes of blue flowers…
Geranium × cantabrigiense 25 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
A low cranesbill that knits into a dense carpet of glossy leaves, spicily aromatic when rubbed, with pink or white flowers from late spring to…
Astilbe chinensis 60 cm × 50 cm after 10 years
A perennial with ferny, dark green leaves that sends up stiff, feathery pink or lilac plumes from midsummer, later than the garden hybrid astilbes. It…
Helleborus niger 30 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
A low evergreen perennial that opens large pure white flowers with yellow stamens from midwinter to early spring, often pushing up through snow.…
Hydrangea anomala subsp. petiolaris 5 m × 3 m after 10 years
A deciduous climbing shrub for a shady, north or east facing wall: it clings by itself to brick, stone and tree trunks with aerial roots and bears…
Leucothoe axillaris 50 cm × 70 cm after 10 years
A low, slow evergreen with glossy leaves for shady spots on acidic soil; the forms on sale turn red to maroon in autumn and hold that colour all…
Hedera helix 10 m × 3 m after 10 years
Common ivy provides year-round greenery over shady ground, fences and walls. Keep its vigorous growth within bounds with regular trimming, and avoid…
Polypodium vulgare 30 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
Common polypody is a small evergreen fern that creeps slowly on its rhizome to weave a loose mat over mossy rocks, stone walls and the bases of trees.…
Leucothoe fontanesiana 1 m × 1.5 m after 10 years
A low evergreen shrub with arching stems and glossy pointed leaves that turn bronze-red and burgundy in autumn and winter, with small white bell…
Tiarella cordifolia 30 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
A woodland ground cover with maple-like leaves that last through mild winters and airy, foamy spikes of white or pink flowers floating above them in…
Hosta fortunei 60 cm × 90 cm after 10 years
The Fortune's hosta group (for example gold-edged 'Aureomarginata' and white-edged 'Francee' and 'Patriot') is a dependable foliage plant for part…
Carex flacca 30 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
A low evergreen sedge with blue-green leaves that are glaucous beneath, slowly knitting into a dense carpet by short rhizomes. It is very adaptable:…
Dryopteris affinis 1 m × 90 cm after 10 years
Golden male fern is a big, sturdy, shuttlecock-shaped fern: the fronds unfurl yellowish green in spring with stalks covered in golden-brown scales,…
Vinca major 45 cm × 1.5 m after 10 years
A glossy-leaved evergreen ground cover that quickly covers large areas with long arching stems that root where they touch the soil, and bears large…
Bergenia cordifolia 60 cm × 90 cm after 10 years
Its large, round, leathery, glossy leaves stay all year and flush burgundy and bronze in the cold, and in early spring it carries clusters of pink…
Hosta × hybrida 50 cm × 80 cm after 10 years
Hostas are the classic foliage plants for shady parts of the garden: broad, veined leaves in green, powdery blue, gold or with white or yellow…
Hosta sieboldiana 'Elegans' 90 cm × 1.5 m after 10 years
Its large, corrugated blue-green leaves fill shady borders nicely, and it also works as a specimen or in a large container. Give it humus-rich,…
Hakonechloa macra 45 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
A soft grass with arching, bamboo-like leaves that is happiest in part shade and shade, good under trees, along edges and in pots. It needs humus-rich…
Cyrtomium fortunei 50 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
Leathery, matt green, sickle-shaped leaflets make the fronds look like sprays of holly, and in mild winters they stay green all year. It is the…
Athyrium niponicum 45 cm × 55 cm after 10 years
Japanese painted fern is a low, arching fern usually sold in its painted forms: the fronds are silvery grey with a green wash and burgundy midribs,…
Pachysandra terminalis 30 cm × 1.5 m after 10 years
A low evergreen ground cover that knits a glossy green carpet under trees and shrubs, even in deep shade where lawn gives up. It is slow to start,…
Polystichum polyblepharum 50 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
Glossy, dark green, finely divided fronds form a neat vase-shaped clump that stays green through winter. In spring the tips of the unfurling fronds…
Alchemilla mollis 45 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
You will know it by its soft, hairy, rounded leaves that hold raindrops and dew like beads, topped by a haze of yellow-green flowers in early…
Athyrium filix-femina 90 cm × 75 cm after 10 years
A deciduous fern with lacy, light green fronds that form a shuttlecock-shaped clump, good for filling shady, moist spots under trees and shrubs.…
Helleborus orientalis 45 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
An evergreen, shade-tolerant perennial that carries nodding white, pink, plum or speckled flowers from late winter into spring, when little else is in…
Vinca minor 20 cm × 1 m after 10 years
Plant it beneath trees and shrubs for a carpet of glossy evergreen leaves and violet-blue spring flowers. It performs best in partial shade and…
Convallaria majalis 25 cm × 30 cm after 10 years
A woodland ground cover that carries strongly scented white bells (pale pink in some forms) in late spring and makes a dense carpet under trees and…
Liriope muscari 45 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
A clump-forming perennial with dark green, grass-like leaves that copes with part shade and shade under trees and carries spikes of purple flowers…
Dryopteris filix-mas 1 m × 90 cm after 10 years
A large, shuttlecock-shaped woodland fern that also grows wild in the region, and one of the least demanding ferns for shade and part shade. Use it…
Carex morrowii 40 cm × 50 cm after 10 years
An evergreen sedge that forms dense, arching, grass-like clumps, grown mostly as cultivars with white or cream leaf margins. Use it under trees and…
Saxifraga × arendsii 15 cm × 30 cm after 10 years
A small perennial that forms tight, moss-like evergreen cushions, covered in spring with pink, red or white flowers on short stems. It suits rock…
Mahonia aquifolium 1.2 m × 1.2 m after 10 years
A slow-growing evergreen shrub with glossy, holly-like, spiny-edged leaves that copes with shade and part shade under trees, where few other shrubs…
Matteuccia struthiopteris 1.5 m × 2 m after 10 years
With its fresh green fronds standing in a shuttlecock shape like ostrich plumes, the ostrich fern is one of the most striking plants for damp, shady…
Hedera colchica 6 m × 3 m after 10 years
Persian ivy has the largest leaves of any ivy: leathery, heart-shaped and up to 20 to 25 cm long, green all winter, and it is mostly sold in yellow or…
Lonicera pileata 60 cm × 1.5 m after 10 years
A low, wide-spreading, dense shrub with small glossy dark green leaves that makes a dependable ground cover in sun or shade, on banks, under trees…
Epimedium × rubrum 30 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
Red barrenwort is one of the best ground covers for dry shade under trees and shrubs, where root competition defeats most other plants. Small red…
Brunnera macrophylla 45 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
A shade-loving perennial with large, rough, heart-shaped leaves that carries a haze of tiny sky-blue, forget-me-not-like flowers above the foliage…
Diervilla sessilifolia 1.2 m × 1.5 m after 10 years
A low, tough deciduous shrub that spreads slowly by suckers and grows in almost any soil, taking drought and even dry shade under trees, so it is…
Lamium maculatum 20 cm × 90 cm after 10 years
Spotted dead-nettle is a low, fast-knitting ground cover for shade and part shade: its silver-marked leaves brighten dark corners and pink, purple…
Aster divaricatus 70 cm × 75 cm after 10 years
One of the few asters that flowers in shade: from late summer into autumn its dark, wiry, zigzag stems carry clouds of small white daisies above…
Euonymus fortunei 80 cm × 1.5 m after 10 years
An evergreen, ground-covering small shrub that forms a dense carpet in sun or shade, and the variegated forms keep their colour through winter. Next…
Euphorbia amygdaloides 60 cm × 90 cm after 10 years
An evergreen woodland perennial with dark green or purple-flushed rosettes and long-lasting lime-green flower heads in spring. It is one of the best…
Lamium galeobdolon 40 cm × 1 m after 10 years
A shade-tolerant ground cover with hooded yellow flowers in spring; its plain green wild form is native to the moist deciduous woods of the region.…
Epimedium × versicolor 30 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
Yellow barrenwort (usually sold as 'Sulphureum') is one of the toughest ground covers for shade: sulphur-yellow flower sprays in spring and…
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