Have you considered the Texas forum? It would be helpful to know what size plants you want, and whether you have a preference for native varieties. For something you don't have to be fooling with, it's hard to beat boxwood and nandina.

I agree, you will get better advice on the Texas forum. Shade seriously narrows down the possibilities.

Some native suggestions are:
Turk's Cap-- Malvaviscus arboreus
Fragrant Mistflower --Eupatorium odoratum
Strawberry bush-- Euonymuns americanus
American Beautyberry -- Callicarpa americana
Chile pequin
Yaupon Holly --Ilex vomitoria

There's also a Shrubs Forum where you might get good ideas.

I am in Central texas, so I don't know your soil and water situation. There a couple of south texans that check in at the Texas forum. Here's a guess, Mexican olive can take part shade, Jasmine,salvia regla, mexican salvias, phlox, iron plant, greek pattern plant, mexican turkscap or sleeping hibiscus is much larger with hanging larger blooms than the texas variety and blooms in fall into winter and is gorgeous but less cold hardy that the normal turkscap but good for you., sago palms and other palms,You can grow many of the dioons that I can not. Mexican or Texan mock orange (harder to find), oak leaf hydrangea ,texas mountain laurel will grow in part shade, it just won't bloom as much. Abutilon, Barbados cherry,Yellow necklace pod, Clethra maybe, rio grande bee bush can take some shade.

This post was edited by wantonamara on Fri, Apr 18, 14 at 23:09