Bushes & Shrubs That Like Shade in Ohio

Types

• Sweet pepperbush (Clethra alnifolia), gray dogwood (Cornus racemosa), dwarf bush-honeysuckle (Diervilla lonicera), flowering raspberry (Rubus odoratus) and smooth hydrangea (Hydrangea arborsecens) are tolerant of shady sites, notes the Ohio State University Extension. Shade-loving Ohio native shrubs include common snowberry (Symphoricarpos albus), American bladdernut (Staphylea trifolia) and leatherwood (Dirca palustris).

Features

• Leatherwood features shiny, dark green leaves, while gray dogwood produces white berries in autumn. The smooth hydrangea blooms white during the summer and the American bladdernut has striped bark. Common snowberry's white flowers turn into white berries that last through the winter months. Flowering raspberry features purple, aromatic flowers and edible fruit.

Function

• Shady sites such as the areas close to a foundation and woodland borders are appropriate places to plant shrubs that like shade in Ohio. For example, leatherwood works well in a woodland or native plant garden and in shade gardens. Leatherwood also thrives along pond edges and near the banks of streams, where shade is present, according to the Missouri Botanical Garden.