• Shade gardens present a challenge for gardeners.Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
  
  Gardeners encounter many types of growing conditions, many of which can not be altered. In areas of thick shade, plants do not get the light they need to grow. Add to that situation wet soils, and many plants will fail. Perennials are those plants that return year after year. These plants tend to bloom only a few weeks, but the foliage remains throughout the growing season. Many perennials not only grow in wet shade, they thrive.
  
  

Jack-in-the-pulpit

• Jack-in-the-pulpit has an unusual flower.jack in the pulpit image by Matthew Antonino from Fotolia.com
  
  Growing up to 3 feet tall, Jack-in-the-pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum) is an herbaceous perennial native to the forests and swamps of North America. Each stem of this plant contains three leaves but what gives this plant its name is its unusual flower. Borne on a single stalk, the flower, or spathe, of the Jack-in-the-pulpit is cylindrical, similar to a lily, but the flower folds over on itself, covering the opening of the flower. Flowers bloom in the early summer and are green with brown and white stripes. Jack-in-the-pulpit produces bright red berries in the fall. Although Jack-in-the-pulpit will grow in a wide range of conditions, it prefers moist to wet soil and shaded situations. This is a low maintenance plant that needs very little care according to The University of Texas.
  
  

Monkshood

• Monkshood (Aconitum spp.) is a shade-loving perennial with stalks of purple, hooded flowers that bloom from mid-to-late summer. This plant will grow 48 inches tall in constantly moist to wet soil. The foliage is herbaceous or dying after the first hard frost to reappear when the weather warms, and bluish green. All parts of this plant are poisonous if ingested so care should be taken with small children. Monkshood grows throughout United State Department of Agriculture hardiness zones 3 through 7, according to North Carolina State University. Cutting back spent flowers will encourage a second bloom.
  
  

Pink Turtlehead

• Pink turtlehead (Chelone oblique speciosa) is a wild flower that grows in partial shade and consistently moist soil. Each plant is 3 feet tall upon maturity with large, serrated green leaves, reaching 6 inches long. The flowers resemble a turtle emerging from its shell and grow in clusters radiating from a central stem. Once the flowers mature and fall off, the plant produces seed pods. Pink turtlehead spreads via these seeds, according to the Illinois Wildflowers. This flower will draw nectar-loving insects such as bees and butterflies as wells as hummingbirds to your garden.