Tag Archives: Plants for Part Shade

Oregon Native: Thalictrum sparsiflorum (Fewflower Meadow Rue)

Posted on by

Plant Name:  Thalictrum sparsiflorum
Common name:  Fewflower Meadow Rue
Plant type:  Herbaceous Perennial
Height:  4’ – 6’
Spread: 2’ – 3’
Bloom Time: June – August
Flower Color:  White to Pinksh
Exposure: Full Sun to Part Shade
Soil Requirements:  Average to Medium Well-Drained Soil
Water Needs: Medium
Attributes:  Showy Flower; Deer Resistant.  Blueish, Columbine like foliage with airy clusters atop sturdy stems.
Note:  Powdery Mildew & Rust can occasionally be a problem. Contrary to its name, it produces many flowers.
Uses:  Good Background Plant when grouped.
Native to: Western North America
Oregon Native:  YES
USDA Hardiness Zone:  4 – 7

Submitted by: Viki Ashford

Viburnum ellipticum

Posted on by

Horticulture Report

Plant Name:  Viburnum ellipticum
Common name: Oregon Viburnum
Plant type:  Deciduous Shrub
Height:  3’ – 11’
Spread: 6’ – 10’
Bloom Time: May – June
Flower Color:  White
Exposure: Sun to Part Shade
Water Needs: Prefer semi-moist, but will tolerant dry
Attributes:  Supports Pollinators; Pest-eating insects & birds; 3-Season; Fall berries for birds. 
Interest: Showy flowers, Red leaves in fall and blue-black Berries  
Note:  Tolerates seasonal flooding & drought.  Grows along stream banks.
Uses:  As a Screen or Background Plant,  Use along high banks of creeks, margins of wet areas, and at edges of trees
Native to: Washington & Oregon west of the Cascades
Oregon Native: YES
USDA Hardiness Zone: 6-9

Report Submitted by: Viki Ashford

Horticulture Report: Astilbe biternata (False Goat’s Beard)

Posted on by

Plant Name:  Astilbe biternata
Common name:  False Goat’s Beard
Plant Type:  Perennial
Plant Height:  2’ – 6’
Spread:  24” – 30”
Bloom Time: April – July.
Flower Color:  White or Yellowish.
Exposure:  Part Shade.
Soil Requirements:  Moist, Rich.
Water Needs:  Medium
Attributes:  Feathery flowers on plumes, Attracts pollinators
Uses:  Good Cut Flower; Woodland Gardens; Wildflower Gardens; Nature Gardens , Pollinator Gardens
Note:  Don’t confuse with Aruncus dioicus (True Goat’s Beard)
Native to:  Appalachia
Oregon Native:   NO
USDA Hardiness Zone:  5 – 8

Report by: Viki Ashford

Horticulture Report: Maidenhair Fern

Posted on by

Plant Name: Adiantum pediatum
Common name: Maidenhair Fern
Plant type: Fern
Height: 1’ – 2 ½’
Spread: 1’ – 1 ½’
Bloom Time: Not Applicable
Flower Color: Not Applicable
Exposure: Part Shade to Shade
Soil Requirements: Well-Drained, Humusy, Acidic, Moist Soil
Water Needs: Medium
Attributes: Finely textured, frilly fronds with curved stalks, fronds divided into finger-like projections. Wiry stems are reddish-brown to black. Coiled young fiddleheads emerge pink in spring.
Note: High summer heat may cause fronds to brown by mid to late summer, particularly if good soil moisture is not maintained and/or plants are grown in too much sun.
Uses: Attractive ornamental fern for the shaded border, woodland garden, shaded rock garden or native plant garden. Combine with broad leaves.
Native to: North America
Oregon Native: YES
USDA Hardiness Zone: 3 – 8

Report by: Viki Ashford

Photo by: Carlotta Lucas

Spring: Crocus vernus

Posted on by

Spring is only a week away and crocuses are popping up in the garden.190311053710

Plant Name:  Crocus vernus
Common name:  Spring Crocus, Giant Crocus
Plant Type:  Crom
Height:   3 inches- 6 inches
Spread:   3 inches- 6 inches
Bloom Time:  March- April
Flower Color:  Purple, White, Yellow, Mixed with stripes
Exposure:   Full sun to Part shade
Soil Requirements:   Well-drained
Water Needs:   Medium
Attributes:   Showy flowers, Early spring flowers
Note:   Dutch Crocuses are bred to produce larger flowers.  
Protect from squirrels when freshly planted
Tolerant:   Deer, black walnut, and clay soils,
Uses:    Cottage Garden, Rock Garden, Coastal Garden, Prairie & Meadow Gardens, Naturalize, Early spring color
Native to:    the Alps, the Pyrenees, and the Balkans
USDA Hardiness Zone:    3 – 8

Horticulture Report: Cotoneaster salicifolius

Posted on by

Plant Name:  Cotoneaster salicifolius


Common name:  Willow-leaf cotoneaster
Plant type: Broadleaf  Evergreen shrub
Height:  6-8 ft
Width:   6-10 ft
Bloom Time:  May
Flower Color:  Small White
Exposure: Full Sun to Part Shade
Soil Requirements: Well-drained Sandy Loam
Water Needs: Average, tolerates drought       
Attributes:  Non-edible Showy Red Berries in Winter, Arching Habit with open branches, Bird-friendly. 
Uses:  Border, Specimen, Background plant, Bank Cover, Group/Mass Plantings, Hedge, Year-round Interest.
Note: In hot areas part sun is best.
Native to: Western China & Northern India  
USDA Hardiness Zone: 6-8

Low-growing varieties:

Cotoneaster salicifolius ‘Repens’:  Low-growing form. Can use as a groundcover. Covered in red pomes fruits in the fall.  Semi-evergreen in severe winter areas. ‘Green Carpet’ is very similar in habit.

Cotoneaster salicifolius ‘Scarlet Leader’ – Prostrate form creates a mat-like low ground cover only 2-3′ tall but spreads 8- 10′. Foliage is glossy & disease-free. Leaves can have purple hue in winter.  Produces abundant scarlet berries in the winter.