Native Plants
![](../_images/smarty_plants.gif)
Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?
A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.
Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
![](../_images/mr_smarty_plants_logo_web_200w.jpg)
rate this answer
![](../_images/star_00.gif)
Tuesday - May 25, 2010
From: Wantagh, NY
Region: Northeast
Topic: Shade Tolerant
Title: Need perennials for a long shady bed in Wantagh, NY.
Answered by: Jimmy Mills
QUESTION:
Looking for perennials to be planted in long narrow beds that receive mostly shade with late day sun. Reside in Long Island, New York. Thank youANSWER:
Let me tell you how you can generate a list of perennials from which you can select the plants to use in your flower beds.
Go to the Recommended Species page and click on New York on the map. This will give you a list of 112 commercially available native plant species suitable for planned landscapes in New York. Scroll down to the Narrow Your Search box on the right of the screen and make the following selections:select New York under STATE, Herb under GENERAL APPEARANCE, and Perennial under LIFESPAN. Check Part sun for LIGHT REQUIREMENT, and Moist for SOIL MOISTURE. You can ignore BLOOM TIME and COLOR for now. Click on the Narrow your Search button and your list is reduced to 27 plant species. Clicking on the name of each plant will pull up its NPIN page which contains descriptios, growing conditions and images of that plant. You can change the list by changing the selections.
Once you have picked your plants, visit our Suppliers Directory to locate businesses that sell native plants or seeds or provide professional landscape or consulting services in your state.
More Shade Tolerant Questions
Plants for shade
August 19, 2008 - I live in hot, humid Houston and the tree coverage of my yard is nearly 100 percent (so, little sunlight reaches the ground). Can you suggest a plant or two that would thrive in these conditions?
view the full question and answer
Native Texas Plants for a Terrarium
October 08, 2014 - I have a 55-gallon aquarium that I would like to make into a terrarium. Are there any Texas native plants that would do well in the limited artificial light of the tank? The plants should be of varyin...
view the full question and answer
North-central Texas shrubs for part-shade
March 30, 2011 - I need a shrub that will be OK in shade (2-3 hrs a day max.), in fairly well-drained soil, will grow to around 8 ft. tall and 4-6 wide, for the region between Denton and Gainesville. If it flowers, al...
view the full question and answer
Plants to replace Polygonum cuspidatum ( Japanese knotweed)
August 10, 2013 - I live in a heavily wooed area of Chippewa Falls, WI. Our property is covered with Giant Japanese Knot Weed. We have been trying to get rid of it for years. We are finally going to try using the dr...
view the full question and answer
Shaded Groundcover for Florida
June 15, 2011 - Looking for ground cover for shade. Area is between two houses. Something with minimal amount of work and care.
view the full question and answer
Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |