Native plants that thrive in shade

Q: I've heard so much about native plants in the past couple of years that I want to grow some. I have a shady garden with lots of big trees, rhododendrons and hydrangeas. The only natives in the garden now are trillium. What others might do well in this situation?

A: The Northwest is rich in native woodland flora, so you have lots of good choices. Small perennials and bulbs to grow en masse beneath and around your shrubs include the gorgeous avalanche and fawn lily, Erythronium revolutum or E. oregonum with mottled leaves and dangling bell-shaped flowers; our delicate native bleeding heart (Dicentra ssp.) and shooting stars (Dodecatheon ssp.) If the shade beneath your trees tends to be dry (although maybe not if you're growing hydrangeas ... ) you could try Vancouveria hexandra and Iris tenax, both of which do well in droughty shade.

If you have any sunny pockets, be sure and slip in a few Pacific Coast iris, arguably the most beautiful of all our native plants. If you have space for more shrubs, red flowering currant Ribes sanguineum, the silk tassel bush (Garrya ssp.) and alpine laurel Kalmia microphylla are all showy and do well in partial shade.

To learn more, check out the Washington Native Plant Society Web page (www.wnps.org), and attend their annual sale, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. May 10 at the Bellevue Botanical Garden (more details on the Web page). King County is a great resource for information on native plants and where to find them http://dnr.metrokc.gov/wlr/pi/npresrcs.htm. For photos and lists of natives for specific situations, see the new book "Encyclopedia of Northwest Native Plants for Gardens and Landscapes" by Kathleen A. Robson, Alice Richter and Marianne Filbert (Timber Press, 2008).

Q: What's a moss milkshake? Is it hard to grow moss as a ground cover?

A: Not if you have shade and acidic soil, as gardeners trying to grow lawn know all too well. Moss milkshakes encourage moss to grow, but they only work if you apply them in shady, somewhat damp conditions. Put a handful of moss (from the garden or nursery) into a blender. Add 1/2 teaspoon of sugar, a can of beer OR a cup of buttermilk (either beer or buttermilk works fine). Blend until the moss is mixed with the liquid, then spread it over rocks and the ground where you want the moss to grow.

For a supremely mossy experience, visit the primeval-feeling moss garden at Bloedel Reserve on Bainbridge Island (www.bloedelreserve.org). To see how moss can be used to great garden effect, visit the Japanese Garden in Washington Park Arboretum (www.seattle.gov/parks/parkspaces/japanesegarden.htm).

Bee study needs you

If like many other gardeners you've been worried about the dwindling bee population, here's a chance to help. Gretchen LeBuhn, San Francisco State University associate professor of biology, is soliciting the help of thousands of "citizen scientists" to collect data on the health of pollinating bees. She's seeking gardeners who live in a variety of urban, suburban and rural environments across the country for this coast-to-coast study on bee pollination, called "The Great Sunflower Project." The commitment of time is no more than 30 minutes, twice a month. See www.greatsunflower.org to learn more and to sign up, or call 650-725-9914. Kits are ready to send out to the first 10,000 participants in time for the plants to flower by National Pollinators Week, June 23 to 28.

Valerie Easton also writes about Plant Life in Sunday's Pacific Northwest Magazine. Write to her at P.O. Box 70, Seattle, WA 98111 or e-mail planttalk@seattletimes.com with your questions. Sorry, no personal replies.