Long, Thin Full Shade Strip on North Side of Home - What to plant?

[RoboticsProfessor]

San Diego, California
USDA Zone 10a
Sunset Zone 23
North side of a home that gets no sun except maybe an hour or two in mid summer.
One foot high walled in strip 3 X 40 feet.
Right now my Golden retriever uses this as his digging plot. As he settles down, I want to plant something colorful here. I'm thinking 4 to 6 different plants would give some contrast and color to this area.

I'm going through all the "shade" plants in Western Gardener. I'm deleting ferns (don't like them), anything poison (two dogs) and anything that says "invasive" (I don't want one or two plants to take over the entire area.)

As a beginner, I like the Western Gardner book, but it is still hard to know from a description what the end result will look like.

I'd like to hear some about some "I Like Shade" plants that you favor and why.

Thank you.

 

[peteyfoozer]

one of the things i like in a shady spot is a dwarf nandina. It has a neat, lacy look and the foliage on mine got really pretty colors in the fall. It made a nice contrast to the other stuff i had planted there.

 

[ninnymary]

I like hostas. For some reason, I can only grow them in pots.

Mary

 

[catjac1975]

There are now thousands of gorgeous hosta in all sizes and color. I'm sure ther are some for your zone.

 

[skeeter9]

I agree - hostas would be a great choice. There are many colors and sizes to choose from. You could mix them with heuchera, which also comes in beautiful colors.

 

[RoboticsProfessor]

Thanks for all your help!!

I took what I knew, what you said and some photos of the area, and went to the biggest nursery in the area. The owner's son took me and my wife around for about an hour educating us and showing us many plants.

We finally decided on a mix of Gardenias, Nandina, begonia and Clevia.