
Native Shrubs
We grow our plants on our Vashon forest property. So we specialize in plants that can handle the shade. Take a look.
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Bald-Hip Rose
Bald-Hip Rose (Rosa gymnocarpa) Grows best in dry to moist open forests, 2-5 ft tall. https://nativeplantspnw.com/baldhip-rose-rosa-gymnocarpa/
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Black Twinberry
Black Twinberry (Lonicera involucrata). Sun to part shade. Moist soil preferred. Grows to 9-10 ft. Forest edge, hedgerow, rain garden. The black berries are not for humans, but birds love them. http://nativeplantspnw.com/black-twinberry-lonicera-involucrata/
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Creeping Oregon Grape
Creeping Oregon Grape (Mahonia repens) 4-8 inches tall. Shade and drought tolerant. Grows in woodlands, conifer forests. https://www.pnwflowers.com/flower/mahonia-repens
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Devil’s Club
Devil’s Club (Oplopanax horridus) for the real native lovers. 3-9 feet tall, moisture loving, part shade. All parts of this plant (except the flowers, berries and roots) have thorns, even the leaves. Here is a wonderful perspective on it: https://www.fs.usda.gov/wildflowers/plant-of-the-week/oplopanax_horridus.shtml
A very valuable medicinal plant. Berries not edible for humans, but birds and bears love them. -
Douglas Spiraea
Douglas Spiraea (Spiraea douglasii) aka Hardhack Spirea 3-6 ft tall, sun or part shade, moist soil. Beautiful spires of pink flowers in summer. http://nativeplantspnw.com/douglas-spiraea-spiraea-douglasii/
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Evergreen Huckleberry
Evergreen Huckleberry (Vaccinium ovatum) Full sun or full shade, evergreen, 6-8 ft tall. Drought tolerant. Birds love the berries, and eat them all winter. Berries edible for humans too. Can be sheared into a formal hedge. Slow grower. https://www.greatplantpicks.org/plantlists/view/1611
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Highbush Cranberry
Highbush Cranberry (Viburnum edule) 2-10 ft tall. Moist woods, forest edges, rocky slopes. Edible berries. Great for birds and wildlife. https://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection/taxon.php?Taxon=Viburnum%20edule
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Hooker’s or Coastal Willow
Hooker’s or Coastal Willow (Salix hookeriana) Sun to part shade, moist to wet soil, 12-18 ft. A Keystone plant for pollinators: https://www.nwf.org/-/media/Documents/PDFs/Garden-for-Wildlife/Keystone-Plants/NWF-GFW-keystone-plant-list-ecoregion-7-marine-west-coast-forest.pdf More info: http://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection/taxon.php?Taxon=Salix%20hookeriana
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Low Oregon Grape, aka Dull Oregon Grape
Low Oregon Grape, aka Dull Oregon Grape (Mahonia nervosa) Evergreen. 2ft tall, Good for dry shade. Hummingbirds like the flowers, birds and mammals eat the berries. Can be a low maintenance, no pruning groundcover. http://nativeplantspnw.com/low-oregon-grape-mahonia-nervosa/
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Mock Orange
Mock Orange (Philadelphus lewisii) Full to part sun, drought tolerant, very fragrant. 5-10 ft tall and wide. Native Americans used it for making tools, snowshoes, furniture, and even soap. Birds eat the seeds. Protect from deer until it gets tall. https://realgardensgrownatives.com/?p=1979
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Nootka Rose
Nootka Rose (Rosa nutkana) Nootka Rose is great as a barrier plant, growing into an impenetrable thicket. Its fragrance fills the air in a seaside habitat. It is valuable for stabilizing banks, especially along streams. http://nativeplantspnw.com/nootka-rose-rosa-nutkana/
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Ocean Spray
Ocean Spray (Holodiscus discolor) Sun or partial shade, dry to moist. Well-drained soil. Nice background plant. Good for slopes. Does well on distu
https://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection/taxon.php?Taxon=Holodiscus%20discolor
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Osoberry
Osoberry (Oemleria cerasiformis) Sun or shade. Moist to somewhat dry soil. Best in an open woodland garden, its flowers and new foliage brighten up an otherwise dreary late winter day. http://nativeplantspnw.com/indian-plum-oemleria-cerasiformis/
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Pacific Ninebark
Pacific Ninebark (Physocarpus capitatus)
8 ft tall and wide, very attractive to pollinators. Good for slopes. Full or part sun. Moderate to fast growing. Can grow to 15 ft tall. https://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection/taxon.php?Taxon=Physocarpus%20capitatus and https://nativeplantspnw.com/pacific-ninebark-physocarpus-capitatus/ -
Pacific Rhododendron
Pacific Rhododendron (Rhododendron macrophyllum) Our state flower! Up to 25 ft. Understory plant. Pink, purplish, or white flowers. Sun to shade, dry to moist. https://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection/taxon.php?Taxon=Rhododendron%20macrophyllum
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Pacific Wax Myrtle
Pacific Wax Myrtle (Morella californica) A great tall shrub for screening. It is evergreen, grows fast to 10-30 ft tall. Can grow in sun or shade. Moist to dry soil, fire resistant. It is an ideal choice for coastal plantings due to its tolerance to salt spray. Wax Myrtle also is able to fix nitrogen in association with the bacteria, Frankia sp., making this shrub especially useful for habitat restoration in soils with low fertility. https://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection/taxon.php?Taxon=Morella%20californica
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Pacific Willow, aka Shining Willow
Pacific Willow (Salix lasiandra) (aka Shining Willow)
Our tallest willow, to 40 ft. Needs moist/wet soil, full sun to part shade. Excellent wildlife shrub and for stabilizing stream banks. Northwest native tribes used the branches and twigs to make hand drills to start fires, use as firewood, and make fish weirs and baskets. The leaves and branches were boiled down and used as a disinfectant. Willow bark is high in salicylic acid, the active ingredient in aspirin. Before aspirin was commercially made in a lab, willow bark was the main source for pain relief. https://www.uwb.edu/wetland/plants/salix-lasiandra It is also a Keystone plant for pollinators: https://www.nwf.org/-/media/Documents/PDFs/Garden-for-Wildlife/Keystone-Plants/NWF-GFW-keystone-plant-list-ecoregion-7-marine-west-coast-forest.pdf
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Red Elderberry
Red Elderberry (Sambucus racemosa). Shrub or small tree. common on moist, open, logged areas and woods near coast. Full to part sun. Red berries for the birds. Can grow up to 20 ft tall. Open habit, deciduous. Grows fast once established. https://www.pnwflowers.com/flower/sambucus-racemosa
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Red Flowering Currant
Red Flowering Currant (Ribes sanguineum) Beautiful pink flowers in spring, attracts hummingbirds and pollinators. Sun to part shade, drought tolerant, berries for the birds. 3-9 ft tall. https://nativeplantspnw.com/red-flowering-currant-ribes-sanguineum/
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Red Huckleberry
Red Huckleberry (Vaccinium parvifolium) 3-6 ft, likes partial shade with rich, humusy soil. Edible red berries for humans and wildlife.
http://nativeplantspnw.com/red-huckleberry-vaccinium-parvifolium/ -
RedTwig Dogwood
RedTwig Dogwood (Cornus sericea, aka Cornus stolonifera) 6-18 feet, moist soil, part shade. Spreads readily in moist soil. Good soil-binding capability. Needs deer protection when young. Red stems in winter, berries for birds, keystone plant for caterpillars. https://nativeplantspnw.com/red-twig-dogwood-cornus-sericea/
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Salal
Salal (Gaultheria shallon). Shade or sun, 3-6 ft. Taller in the shade. Prefers dry shade. Slow to establish, but then spreads easily. Good for binding soil on slopes. Edible berries. Great for native restoration, birds. http://nativeplantspnw.com/salal-gaultheria-shallon/
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Salmonberrry
Salmonberry (Rubus spectabilis) Part sun, moist soil, edible berries for birds and humans. Early bloomer. Hummingbirds love the flowers. The birdsong of the Swainson's thrush, sometimes known as the salmonberry bird, is an indicator known to multiple indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest Coast to be associated with the ripening of salmonberries.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubus_spectabilis -
Scouler’s Willow
Scouler’s Willow (Salix scouleriana) 6-35 feet tall, perfect for restoring wildlife habitat. Over 300 species of butterflies and moths use willow as a host plant. Moist soil, sun to partial shade. More drought tolerant than other willows.
https://www.uwb.edu/wetland/plants/salix-scouleriana It is also a Keystone plant for pollinators: https://www.nwf.org/-/media/Documents/PDFs/Garden-for-Wildlife/Keystone-Plants/NWF-GFW-keystone-plant-list-ecoregion-7-marine-west-coast-forest.pdf
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Serviceberry
Serviceberry (Amelanchier alnifolia) sweet fruit, great for birds and pollinators, nice fall foliage. Full to part sun. Dry to moderate moisture. Sun with dry soils are best. Grows on rocky slopes. Berries were used by Native Americans in pemmican. https://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection/taxon.php?Taxon=Amelanchier%20alnifolia
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Snowberry
Snowberry (Symphoricarpos albus) 2-6 ft tall. Moist to dry forest, shady to open slopes. White berries look like Christmas balls most of the winter. Can form thickets. Great for slopes. https://www.pnwflowers.com/flower/symphoricarpos-albus
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Soapberry
Soapberry (Shepherdia canadensis) Also known as Russet Buffaloberry. It grows in dry to moist open woods, often on sandy, rocky, or gravelly soils. https://nativeplantspnw.com/soapberry-shepherdia-canadensis/
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Sweet Gale
Sweet Gale (Myrica gale) also known as Bog Myrtle, or Sweet Bayberry. Grows in wetlands. Height 4.5 ft http://nativeplantspnw.com/sweet-gale-myrica-gale/
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Tall Oregon Grape
Tall Oregon Grape (Mahonia aquifolium) Evergreen. 6-8 ft, sun or shade, great screening plant. Good for pollinators and birds, including hummingbirds. https://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection/taxon.php?Taxon=Mahonia%20aquifolium
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Thimbleberry
Thimbleberry (Rubus parviflorus) Fruit edible and tasty. No thorns, soft fuzzy leaves. Up to 8 ft. Part shade. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubus_parviflorus
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Thin-leaved Huckleberry
Thin-leaved Huckleberry (Vaccinium membranaceum) http://nativeplantspnw.com/mountain-huckleberry-vaccinium-membranaceum/
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Vine Maple as a Shrub
Vine Maple (Acer circinatum) Shrub or small tree, 16-26 feet tall. Colorful fall foliage, understory plant, excellent tree for the home landscape. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acer_circinatum
