• Large pine trees provide dense shade that offers little light for growing plants.Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
  
  Many homes have mature, well-established evergreens and deciduous trees that shelter the home and provide welcome shade. The dense shade these trees provide often inhibits the growth of other shrubs, flowers and vines. Fortunately, there are literally hundreds of plants that tolerate shade and produce color and visual interest in spite of the lack of sunlight.
  
  

Shade-Loving Shrubs

• Select landscape shrubs that prefer dense shade. Aucuba (Aucuba japonica) is a low-growing evergreen shrub that reaches only 8 to 12 feet at maturity. Aucuba is drought- and shade-tolerant. There are many varieties of aucuba that offer variegated leaves that add contrast and visual interest.
  
  Variegated False Aralia (Eleutherococcus sieboldianus 'Variegatus' ), a deciduous, upright shrub, grows to 6 feet tall and is tolerant of shade and drought. The white-edged leaves shine in deep shade.
  
  Hydrangeas (Hydrangea macrophylla) require shade to produce bright blue, pink and white blooms. The vivid flowers offer a bright spot of color to a deeply shaded flower bed. They require nutrient-rich, acidic soil. Hydrangeas grow to 5 to 6 feet tall if not controlled by annual pruning.
  
  Japanese cleyera (Ternstroemia gymnanthera) tolerates partial or deep shade. The leaves have reddish ridges that provide contrast. The shrub grows best in sub-tropical climates and requires fertile, well-drained soil.
  
  

Shade-Tolerant Groundcovers

• Lily-of-the-Valley plants add a bright spot of white to shaded flower beds.lily of the valley image by Aidairi from Fotolia.com
  
  Plant Lily-of-the-Valley beneath pine trees. These hardy plants present deep green foliage and tiny, bell-shaped flowers. Lily-of-the-Valley is a dense ground cover that spreads to fill in bare spots under trees, shrubs and larger plants. They do well in the acidic soil around the base of most conifers.
  
  

Perennials That Prefer Shade

• Plant shade-loving perennial flowers around the base of shade trees. Wood Anemone (Anemone nemerosa), a deciduous perennial, grows low to the ground and spreads to fill in bare areas around tree trunks and rock gardens. Anemone flowers are blue or white. They bloom in mid-spring. Wood anemones tolerates dry shade.