i cant think of any shrub that minds sun on any level .... AFTER they get established ... and proper watering in hot sun is the issue to get them established ...

shall we presume the TN in your name tells us TN?...

whats the native soil ...

but august is not planting time for many of us ..... i hope you are doing your research for fall planting ....

are you going to rely on bigboxstore.. if so.. your choices are what they offer .... if you wouldn't mind mail order.. the sky is the limit ...

a pic of the area.. might help us.. help you ...

if i had an 80 long area ... i would NOT plant all of one thing.. i would look at leave variables ... for texture when not in flower ...i would also look to plants that bloom in every season .... e..g. not all early spring bloomers ... and then i might throw in different color leaves.. like a purple smoke bush ... and dont forget fall berries as a color contrast in fall ... e.g. viburnum and holly ...

8 feet is a great starting point ... but more is better for the long run.. which also brings in the variable.. of not planting them all in a line 8 feet away ... if you like some plant that has greater potential .... plant it out 10 feet .. or some such ... dont go all boring straight line on us ... use ggole images.. and the latin names of plants.. to see what kind of beast.. that little plant you bring homw might become ...

and keep in mind.. if you have to paint or maintain the structure behind.. add a few extra feet for access back there.. never forget.. foundation plantings are planted to hide the foundation.. not on them ... and some times.. even 8 feet isnt enough ...

when done right.. after planting you are going to think.. man i was nuts for putting those small plants so far away ... and then in a few years your going to be thinking.. i should have added 5 more feet.. lol ..

ken

Some respectful disagreement with the above: There are many shrubs that will not do well with afternoon sun. Broad leaved rhododendrons are one example. It's also true of many other ericaecious plants and many evergreens, especially those with light colored foliage such as a number of chamaecyparis cultivars. The problem is not the sun per se, but the combination of sun and low humidity. The heat from bright direct sun in the morning is lessened by the atmospheric moisture left over from the previous night. Shrubs that would be perfectly happy with full sun until noon, then at least some shade for the remainder of the day, will suffer from the more intense heat and dry air of the afternoon hours. Leaves can literally sunburn, colors wash out, and dehydration becomes much more likely than with morning sun. Full morning shade from a building followed by intense afternoon sun as is the case with germanetn's post, is actually a very difficult environment for almost all plants.

If the OP does hail from Tennessee, he has a far greater choice than a big box store and mail order. Tennessee has a remarkable nursery industry.

right maine.. i forgot the shade ones .... and yes.. for those.. sun during the heat of the day is the worst ....

i was trying to encourage OP beyond big box store .... ken

You are right. I do live in TN. This is what the back of my house looks like. 80' of not much. Still looking for shrubs or perennials that grow in strong afternoon sun.

some of my favorites:

Loropetalum 'Purple Diamond' paired withForsythia x Intermedia

Berberis Thunbergii paired with Buxus Sempervirens

Nandina 'Firepower' paired with Gold Mop Cypress

Eunymous Alatus 'Compactus' Paired with Japanese Azaleas (evergreen)

Hibiscus Syriacus paired with Gardenia Brighamii

note: these are specifically hardy to zone 7, It would help to know your USDA hardiness zone.

Despite assurances to the contrary by Caldwell Home and Garden - a somewhat less than 100% reliable source - gardenia brighamii remains a tropical plant native to Hawaii, where it is seriously endangered, and not hardy below freezing. The list above also includes two seriously invasive species - the barberry and the eunonymous - which no responsible person would be recommending. Especially not a Professional something or other.

yes, burning bush and japanese barberry are invasive in some areas (keyword: some) and are typically ranked (in my area) a significant threat which sounds much worse than it actually is. Typically (I would know, I have helped many customers with the control of invasive species) these plants do not cause a problem. On a side note, the OP may not give a crap about enviromental impact and just want a nice-looking shrub. I have a rather successful gardenia brighamii shrub that has been planted for five years, despite a small amount of dieback from it's first winter. If you want pictures of the gardenia, I WILL show you. akamainegrower, I am SURE that you and everyone else on this forum are less than a 100% reliable source because nobody is perfect and you learn new things daily.

note: just because I suggest something doesn't mean I have or keep it in stock, I suggest a plant because I like it's appearance or because it fits the description perfectly. By suggesting plants (that even some wouldn't suggest) I give the OP a bigger range of choices.

another quick note: I do not sell Japanese barberry or burning bush, go see for yourself on my website. Also many items (such as the privet/callery pears) have been discontinued (and for good reason!).

So are we to accept the novel concepts that seriously invasive/significant threat plants are just fine as long as one can rely on the expertise of Caldwell Home and Garden and/or "doesn't give a crap about environmental impact"? A new level of arrogance and irresponsibility seems to have been reached.

Some people (me being one of them) may not care how invasive a plant is, as long as it is useful to them. There is no "stopping" the invasion at this point, so why worry about it? Do you seriously think someone is going to rip out their barberries just because they are mildly invasive? Take Autumn Olive for example, it provides fragrant flowers, food for humans and wildlife, fixes nitrogen for other plants, can be sheared into almost any shape, and great for erosion control. Do you think a few hippies are going to be able to stop the invasion at this point? I think not. I also do not like the privets, callery pear, ailanthus, etc., However I can't stop them. I am looking at the use and control in landscaping not the whole picture (and for perfectly good reason). I am not forcing anyone to plant these shrubs, it is the OP's choice not yours. It is hardly professional to argue on a gardening forum, let's just leave it at this and let the OP decide his/her stance on the issue. Is that ok king akamaingrower? Let's just stop the bashing, it runs rampant on this forum.

"Some people (me being one of them) may not care how invasive a plant is, as long as it is useful to them." Caldwell, the issue is that your neighbors have to deal with the results of you planting invasive species. Adding additional ones do make it worse. Instead, work on removal of ones that are growing and don't plant more.

I think the problem is that with your pro designation, inexperienced gardeners may take your info as always accurate, which it isn't always. So it's not necessarily bashing (though it may be in some instances) as it is folks feeling the need to correct inaccurate info that you have provided. If you took care to provide info that is consistently accurate or even mostly so, you would get a friendlier response.

Here's a link to TN's invasive species list. Berberis is listed as significant threat and burning bush Euonymus as a lesser threat, so please don't plant them.

For germainetn, who may have given up due to the contentious responses, I congratulate you on having the forethought to plant outside of the roof overhang. Both the plants and the building will be happier for that. I'd start by deciding on several factors that will help narrow down your choices.

Do you prefer the look of one kind of plant (a hedge) or a mixed shrub/small tree border?

Do you want winter interest from evergreens (conifers or broadleafed) and shrubs/trees with interesting fruit, bark, or branch structure, or are you fine with just the building and bare twigs all winter?

Do you want some color variety in the foliage?

Do you have a height and width you are thinking of?

You will get better plant suggestions if we have some ideas of your goals. One recommendation is to drive around and take a few photos of plantings that appeal to you so we have an idea of what you might like.

I live in a rural area where a single species hedge would look a bit silly. Here are some photos of a shrub border I ended up making; I wanted a mix of evergreens (mostly rhododendrons, spruce, and arborvitae) and deciduous shrubs/small trees, along with a few perennials for seasonal color, less than 20' high, and full enough to block some of the work areas behind it. It started out quite sparse since I left room for growth, but is now nicely dense.

I kind of liked finding a grove a barberries in the neighbor's ditch, now I have them in my front yard as beautiful columnar shrubs.