Annual Shade Gardens in Zone 4

About Annuals

• Plainly speaking, annuals are plants that die completely after one year. The technical definition involves complex explanations of life-cycle processes, but for the average gardener, it is enough to know that the plants they set out in spring are not going to bloom the following year. This means gardeners must buy bedding plants each spring from a local nursery or start their own flowers from seed indoors in late winter for setting out when temperatures are high enough to guarantee their survival.

Environmental Considerations

• Regardless of cold hardiness, all plants have requirements for light, water and soil type. When choosing annuals for your shady yard, read the labels. There are various levels of shade from light to full, so make sure your site has suitable light for the plant to flourish. You will also need to know whether the plant prefers a dry spot or a wet one and whether it likes a rich, humus-filled soil or will tolerate poor soil conditions. In addition, some plants are particular about soil acidity or alkalinity. You can buy a pH test kit to check the soil's pH or have your soil thoroughly analyzed through your state extension office.

Annuals for Average Shade Conditions

• Lamiums are good choices for shady areas with average soil and moisture requirements. The National Gardening Association recommends L. galeobdolon (Herman's Pride or 'Variegatum) or L. maculatum (Beedham's White) for ground cover or mass plantings. Annual lupines, wax begonias, impatiens, lobelias, alpine strawberries, native geraniums or cranesbill and coleus are other possibilities for average shade.

Annuals for Dry Shade Conditions

• Many drought tolerant annuals work well in zone 4 and, if protected, may even re-seed and bloom again the following year. Among these so-called hardy annuals, dianthus, hardy begonias and heuchera are standouts. More unusual is the bright New Zealand flax, Phormium (Yellow Wave), a grass-like plant in lime green that works as well in full sun as shade and tolerates a huge range of soil conditions and climate zones.

Annuals for Wet Shade Conditions

• Violets are perfect for moist to wet ground, and most are hardy as far as zone 2. Other good choices for wet areas in zone 4 are the cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis), several varieties each of heuchera and fuchsia, Vinca major, Campanula carpatica and many of the primulas -- including the polyantha primrose (Polyantha x Primula).