Anything that would take over 8 ft tall weeds would take over the world. You wouldn't want it anywhere near you. Kudzu for example.

well, I wouldnt leave them 8' tall. I had planned on trimming them and tilling the ground under where I could, but the weeds are well established and I am sure the roots and seeds would cause the plants to come back. a lot of plants I see on google for shady areas take 2-3 years to take. in that time the weeds would surely be back and choke out the new plantings and I would be back at square one.

Smother / kill the weeds over winter, then see what still comes up in the spring. Kill those, then think about planting. When I have needed to kill an area, I have covered it with several layers of newspaper, wet those down, then covered that with bark mulch. Some people use grass clippings on top instead, but I have always been afraid of getting grass seeded in. In your shade that would probably not be an issue.

You might look into this low growing Cotoneaster: Botanical Name: Cotoneaster dammeri 'Lowfast' Common Name: Lowfast Bearberry Cotoneaster

The stats on this plant says it would grow in your growing zone. Is your tree shade heavy or dappled? I've never grown this plant but it sounds like something that might work for you.

Mary

Click here to read about Cotoneaster 'Lowfast'

What kind of trees are they? How about ferns?

The trees I have identified are:walnut, maple, honeylocust, and mulberry. I also recently identified comfrey growing on the property.... would spreading comfrey be a good idea? thanks for the suggestions. I will do some research on cotoneaster and ferns!