Ok folks, this is my dilemma...I have just put in a new patio and garden wall. I have a space about 8x4 ft that is to be a "garden area". that is, if i can ever figure out what to plant there. it is in full shade all day long. and i love love love color. its at the back of my house under a wide picture window. and other than that window, there is nothing on the back of the house. the space between the ground and the bottom of the window is about 3 ft and i want to cover as much of the open space as i possibly can. i am looking for perrenials (for each season) that are shade loving and pretty easy to maintain (no climbers). any advice???

Oh, and I almost forgot, buy a bunch of caladium bulbs - georgius foiage in every color!!

Oops, just re-read and saw that you want color.
Lantana?

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Bill has put together a list of plants that love shade. This may help you get started.

Shade Plants

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We are all under the same stars... therefore we are never far apart.

Joclyn the purple ones do good in partial shade as well.. I have one and just love it..

You could go with bleeding hearts,canteebury bells.coral bells, bell flowers,astilbe,Hydrangia,lenten rose...

Is there some way you can post a picture of the area?

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Tonight I am having friends for dinner... Hanibal Lector My Album

spring, i only have one area that gets shade...for about an hour a day and that's just not enough

maybe the chinaberry i transplanted (thx, netwiz!) will take hold and grow well enough to provide enough shade...

anyway, back to sandra's question! if you could post a pic, that really would be helpful! and does the area get any sun at all? if so, how many hours a day?

hydrangea (a bush) do very well in the shade (there are a ton of varieties, too). some clematis (a vine) also can do well in the shade (as long as they get some sun). and you can never go wrong with hosta (there are hundrends of varieties). coral bells are another that i can't have - they are absolutely lovely!!

here's a list that tammy (tkhooper) came up with earlier this summer when i posted a similar question looking for ideas for a neighbor:

Acanthopanax sieboldiana 'Variegatus'-Acanthopanax
Acer circinatum-Maple, Vine
Actaea racemosa-Black Cohosh
Actaea simplex-Bugbane
Astilbe c. 'Superba'-False Spirea
Astilboides tabularis-Astilboides
Athyrium filix-femina-Lady Fern, Uncrested
Chasmanthium latifolium-Northern Sea Oats
Corylopsis sinensis-Chinese Winter Hazel
Fuchsia magellanica-Fuchsia, Hardy
Mahonia aquifolium-Oregon Grape
Matteuccia struthiopteris 'The King'-Jumbo Ostrich Fern
Polygonatum commutatum-Solomon's Seal, Great

last, but not least, check out native plants of ohio