Ferns or Vinca Minor Not too many things grow with so little light

You could prob do a topiary or spiral cut boxwood. Not sure about the sun requirements tho...

Those planters are way too small for this house . I would get something like the tall blaack one in the post above.

Which tall black planters? These are two feet tall and I think if I went any taller the plant would cover the mailbox....

The lack of light is the biggest issue. Personally I'd lean toward picking larger planters and moving them to either side of the stairs where there is light instead of trying to grow anything under the porch awning. Coleus is always a good choice for containers since it comes in so many colors. The White Flower Farm catalog normally carries several packages of plants for container gardening, here's a link to one of their coleus options: http://www.whiteflowerfarm.com/87187-product.html#

Rosemary is very low maintenance.

Move the mailbox to a spot on the brick or a pole oneand get a nicer one in black if you actually still get mail delivery and yes you need taller planters those look puny next to the size of your pillars