The lowest limb of the live oak canopy is probably 25'-35' above the planting area so there is definitely room for something to grow up. I have an 8' wood fence and would like something that would eventually grow 10'-15' high. My deck is low and is only 9-10 inches off the ground so whatever was planted in that 2' wide area between my deck and fence would have room to grow over the top of my deck area to a certain extent.

define your shade in terms of how many hours a day would it get sun .. and what hours of the day .. good that you told us what does grow there ...

are we working on the north side of the fence... or which side anyway ..

do understand.. not many things die or fail in too much shade .. they just grow slower .. and not to expectation ... so your wished on height.. might take a very long time to accomplish ... with the lack of vertical vigor ...

a pic of the spot might save a thousand more words ...

ken

Thanks For the suggestions Ken, here are some photos of the area off my deck in question. First off, please disregard the state of disrepair my deck and yard are in. I’m in the process of cleaning up and pressure washing my deck and fence. It didn’t help things that I was out a month with Covid. Luckily I’m feeling good and feel the itch to do some gardening and yard work now. The area is at the North end of my yard and the North side Of my fence. It receives morning sun for a few hours and dappled shade thereafter. The apidistra is in a pot and will be moved, but that is the area I want to plant some evergreen shrubs in. It is definitely the shadiest part of my yard but it does get some light. As you can see the live oak drops a lot of leaves. Hope this helps. Thanks!

https://www.monrovia.com/plant-catalog/plants/1996/shrubby-yew-podocarpus/