12 Australian native plants that thrive in deep shade

Deep shade is one of the most challenging environments in any garden. Under dense tree canopies, beside south-facing fences or beneath wide building eaves, the combination of low light, root competition and dry soil can defeat most plants. But Australian flora has produced a suite of species that not only tolerate these conditions but can flourish in them.

This article presents twelve Australian natives for deep-shade situations, drawing from across diverse climate zones. We include well-loved garden staples alongside several lesser-known species that deserve wider recognition.

Understanding shade in the Australian garden

True deep shade (under 2 hours direct sun) is the most demanding site but dappled or part shade (2 to 4 hours) opens up many more plant options. Soil beneath established trees is often dry and root-filled so raised beds or generous organic matter can transform success rates.

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Plant 01Soft tree fern (Dicksonia antarctica)

Cool temperate to warm temperate · Victoria, Tasmania, NSW, SE Qld highlands

One of Australia's most iconic shade plants, the soft tree fern is a living fossil that has grown in moist gullies and rainforest margins for millions of years. Its enormous, arching fronds reaching up to three metres in length create huge impact in a garden setting. The fibrous, water-retaining trunk slowly builds over decades, eventually reaching several metres in height.

Jungle Rebel from Brussels, Belgium, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Dicksonia antarctica performs best in moist, humus-rich soil with reliable humidity, making it ideal for southern and highland gardens. In drier areas, consistent watering during summer is essential.

Soft tree fern care tip

Water directly onto the trunk as well as the root zone with a hose. The fibrous trunk stores moisture and feeds the plant. Mulch deeply (10cm) to retain soil moisture and mimic the humus-rich rainforest floor. Never remove the growing crown (the central bud) as this will kill the plant. Established specimens can be transplanted with minimal root disturbance as the trunk itself acts as the main water reservoir during transit.

Plant 02Red back ginger (Alpinia caerulea)

Tropical to warm temperate · Queensland, coastal NSW

Red back ginger is an understorey plant of eastern Australian rainforest and wet forest that delivers lush, tropical-looking foliage in real shade. Broad, glossy leaves are backed in deep red on arching canes that reach about two metres, with white flowers in the warmer months followed by bright blue berries. It belongs to the ginger family, and both the berries and the young stem bases are traditional bush foods with a mild ginger tang.

Martin Hannan-Jones, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Keep the root zone moist through the first summer. Established clumps then cope with normal dry spells in shade and tolerate boggy or slow-draining ground better than most foliage plants. Each clump spreads to about 1.5m, so allow room, and a row along a shaded path or fence line makes a soft, arching border.

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Growing red back ginger

Plant about one metre apart for a dense understorey that closes over within a couple of seasons. Red back ginger tolerates light frost only, so in cooler districts plant it beneath an evergreen canopy or in a large pot that can be moved under cover for winter. Cut spent canes off at ground level whenever they appear and new canes will rise from the base. As with any bush food, research the plant before eating the berries or stem bases.

Plant 03Native violet (Viola hederacea)

Cool temperate to subtropical · Eastern Australia, widespread

The native violet is perhaps Australia's most versatile and forgiving shade groundcover. It forms a dense, weed-suppressing mat of kidney-shaped leaves with small violet-and-white flowers for most of the year even in deep shade. It spreads readily by runners and will naturalise under trees, binding soil on slopes and softening hard edges.

This is a true workhorse plant that suits almost any cool to warm temperate garden in eastern Australia. It is especially effective beneath eucalypts where dry shade and root competition challenge most plants.

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Using native violet as groundcover

Plant 30 to 40cm apart for rapid coverage; runners will fill gaps within one season. Mow or shear back hard in late winter to refresh the plant and encourage dense re-growth. It tolerates occasional foot traffic and can be used between stepping stones or pavers.

Plant 04Davidson's plum (Davidsonia jerseyana)

Subtropical to warm temperate · NSW North Coast, South East Queensland

The Mullumbimby plum is one of the most spectacular rainforest understorey trees in cultivation. A compact, multi-stemmed small tree rarely exceeding five metres, it produces dramatic leaves with prominent red midribs and clusters of deep burgundy-purple plums directly on the trunk and main branches. This phenomenon is known as cauliflory. The fruit is intensely flavoured and highly prized for jams, sauces and drinks.

Zaareo, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

In the garden, this species excels as a structural shade plant in subtropical and warm temperate gardens, providing year-round foliage interest and a sensational fruiting display in late summer.

Growing Davidson's plum for fruit

Plant at least two specimens for reliable fruiting but single plants can self-pollinate. Protect young plants from frost with hessian cloth or a temporary shelter in their first two winters. Feed with a slow-release native fertiliser low in phosphorus in spring to encourage fruiting.

Plant 05Tasman flax lily (Dianella tasmanica)

Cool temperate to warm temperate · Victoria, Tasmania, NSW

Dianellas are a mainstay of the Australian native garden and the Tasman flax lily is the standout performer in deep shade. Its arching strappy leaves form clumps to around one metre and in spring it sends up tall, branching flower stems with small blue-violet flowers followed by glossy purple berries. The berries are an excellent food source for native birds.

This species is remarkably tough once established, handling not only dense shade but also dry periods, frost and competition from tree roots. It works beautifully as a mid-layer plant in a layered native garden design. Read more about layered planting design with Australian natives to maximise biodiversity in your garden.

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Getting the best from Tasman flax lily

Divide large clumps in autumn with a hori hori knife and replant to fill gaps. The berries, while attractive to birds, are mildly toxic to humans so be mindful in gardens where children play.

Plant 06Climbing lily (Tripladenia cunninghamii)

Subtropical · South-east Queensland, north-east NSW

This slender, scrambling lily native to the rainforest margins produces a cascade of narrow, bright green leaves and small, blue flowers over a long season. In its natural habitat it weaves through rainforest understoreys, clambering over logs and low shrubs. In the garden, it makes a wonderful pot plant for a shaded terrace or an unusual ground-level scrambler in a subtropical shade garden.

Melburnian, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Its refined texture and long flowering period make it suitable for more cottage-style garden settings. It is very rarely available in nurseries so seek it out through specialist native plant societies or nurseries focused on rainforest species.

Growing climbing lily

It grows well in a hanging basket in a shaded position, where its scrambling habit becomes an attractive feature. Keep soil consistently moist but never waterlogged; excellent drainage is essential. This is a slow grower so patience is rewarded with a truly distinctive plant.

Plant 07Slender mat rush (Lomandra hystrix)

Warm temperate to subtropical · Queensland, NSW (widely grown further south)

Slender mat rush is the creek-side relative of the more familiar spiny-headed mat-rush and is often described as the most shade-tolerant of the lomandras. It forms a soft, fountaining mound of fine, glossy green leaves to about a metre, with creamy-yellow flower spikes through spring. In the wild it grows along creek banks and in moist gullies in Queensland and New South Wales, which explains its tolerance of damp soil and periodic waterlogging.

Ethel Aardvark, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

 The dense, fibrous root system binds soil, which makes it useful on shaded banks and slopes as well as in garden beds. Set plants about 70cm apart for a mass planting. For more on native grasses and strappy plants, see our guide.

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Growing slender mat rush in shade

Water regularly through the first two summers then leave it to look after itself. Growth is lushest with some dappled light, so in the darkest positions expect a slower and more open clump. If the leaves turn tatty, cut the whole clump back hard and fresh growth will return from the base.

Plant 08Crow's ash (Flindersia australis)

Subtropical to tropical · Queensland, northeastern NSW

Crow's ash is an outstanding rainforest tree that earns its place in larger shade gardens across subtropical and tropical Australia. A medium to large rainforest canopy tree in the wild, in cultivation it can be managed as a structural mid-canopy tree. Its glossy foliage is beautiful year-round and it produces clusters of white flowers followed by distinctive star-shaped woody capsules.

Tatiana Gerus from Brisbane, Australia, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Crow's ash is significant culturally and ecologically. It is a timber tree of great historical importance in Queensland and its flowers attract native bees and insects.

Planting crow's ash in the garden

Young plants tolerate and even prefer shade. The distinctive star-shaped seed capsules can be used in decorative arrangements. Allow a generous planting distance of at least five metres from structures; this is ultimately a large tree.

Plant 09Necklace fern (Asplenium flabellifolium)

Cool temperate to subtropical · Widespread eastern Australia, WA, SA

The necklace fern is best suited to dry shade and is a genuinely underused garden plant. This compact, delicate-looking fern produces long, arching fronds made up of fan-shaped pale green leaflets, giving a fine texture. Uniquely, fronds often produce a plantlet at their tip which roots on contact with the soil, hence the common name necklace fern.

Its tolerance of dry, rocky conditions makes it particularly useful for the challenging dry shade beneath dense canopy trees. It is excellent for rock gardens, low walls and contained planting pockets.

Propagating the necklace fern

Take advantage of natural propagation by pegging frond tips to the soil and keeping them moist until the tip plantlet roots, then sever the frond and pot up the new plant. Plant in crevices between rocks or in the gaps in dry-stone walls for a naturalistic effect.

Plant 10Wonga vine (Pandorea pandorana)

Subtropical to warm temperate · Widespread eastern and northern Australia

The Wonga vine is a twining vine that naturally inhabits rainforest margins and sheltered gullies across much of eastern Australia. In spring it produces a spectacular mass of small cream-to-pink tubular flowers with dark pink to purple throats. It flowers best in full sun to part shade, but it is vigorous enough to climb from a shaded base toward the light, which makes it useful on shaded trunks and fence lines.

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In the garden, the Wonga vine is ideal for covering fences and pergolas in part-shaded positions, for scrambling up the trunks of large trees, or for providing a dense, leafy screen where other climbers struggle. It is long-lived and the flowers attract honeyeaters and large butterflies.

Managing Wonga vine

Prune by up to one-third immediately after flowering in spring to maintain size and encourage the following year's floral display. Provide a robust support structure. In frost-prone areas, plant in a sheltered microclimate such as against a north-facing wall with overhead canopy protection.

Plant 11Small crowea (Crowea exalata)

Cool temperate to warm temperate · Victoria, NSW, SE Queensland

Small crowea is one of the few flowering shrubs that actively performs better in shade than in full sun. In filtered light beside a south-facing fence, the clear pink, five-petalled star flowers hold their colour and are produced almost continuously from late summer through to spring.

It is compact, neat and long-lived in the right position, forming a rounded dome to about one metre across with narrow aromatic foliage. The flowers are an excellent cut flower and the plant is a reliable nectar source for native bees and butterflies through autumn and winter. See our guide to winter-flowering natives for companion planting suggestions.

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Getting the most from small crowea

Prune lightly after the autumn and spring flushes with sharp secateurs to maintain the rounded habit and prevent it from becoming open and woody at the centre. Do not use phosphorus fertiliser.

Plant 12Wallum phebalium (Phebalium woombye)

Warm temperate to subtropical · Coastal SE Queensland, NE New South Wales

Wallum phebalium is one of the most rewarding flowering shrubs for the partially shaded garden and one of the least known. It produces clusters of small, starry white to pale pink flowers with prominent yellow stamens from late winter through spring. It grows naturally on coastal sand dunes and heathland in SE Queensland and NE NSW, often in the filtered light beneath banksias and tea trees.

In the garden, it is most useful in precisely those difficult shaded positions that defeat most flowering shrubs: beside a south-facing fence, under an open canopy, or in the gap between a house wall and established trees. Plant into well-drained soil using a hand fork and mulch well to maintain soil moisture and a cool root run.

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Growing wallum phebalium

The prostrate form is particularly useful as a flowering groundcover for shaded positions. Prune lightly with secateurs immediately after flowering to keep the plant dense.

Planting & maintenance

Preparing the site. Success in deep shade begins with soil preparation. The most common limiting factors are compaction, dryness from tree root competition and low organic matter. Before planting, incorporate a generous layer (10–15cm) of well-aged compost or composted leaf litter and work it into the top 20cm of soil with a sturdy garden fork.

Mulching. Mulch is non-negotiable in a shade garden. A 7–10cm layer of coarse wood chip, pine bark or shredded native leaf litter will retain soil moisture, suppress weeds, moderate temperature and gradually enrich the soil as it breaks down. Keep mulch pulled back slightly from plant stems and trunk bases to prevent collar rot.

Watering. Even shade-tolerant plants need regular watering during their establishment period, which is typically the first two summers. After that, most of the plants listed here require minimal supplemental irrigation in temperate climates, though tropical species will benefit from a thorough deep watering during extended dry spells.

Feeding. Australian natives generally have modest nutrient requirements and are sensitive to high phosphorus levels. Use a low-phosphorus, slow-release native fertiliser applied once in spring. Avoid high-nitrogen products, which promote lush but soft growth vulnerable to pest and disease damage. The best long-term feeding strategy is maintaining a healthy organic mulch layer that slowly releases nutrients as it decomposes.

Pruning and renovation. Most shade-tolerant natives are low-maintenance, but periodic upkeep makes a significant difference to their appearance and longevity. Strappy-leaved plants such as Dianella and Lomandra benefit from being cut back hard every two to three years. Ferns and lilies simply need old or damaged fronds removed as they appear. Climbers should be pruned after flowering to control vigour. Visit our native plant pruning guide.

Pest and disease tip

Shade gardens can be prone to slug and snail damage (particularly on ferns and soft-leaved plants) and to fungal issues if air circulation is poor and foliage is persistently wet. Control slugs and snails with iron-based baits, which are safe around wildlife and pets. Improve air movement by thinning overhead canopy where possible.

At a glance

• 01Soft tree fern (Dicksonia antarctica)
  Cool temperate to warm temperate
• 02Red back ginger (Alpinia caerulea)
  Tropical to warm temperate
• 03Native violet (Viola hederacea)
  Cool temperate to subtropical
• 04Davidson's plum (Davidsonia jerseyana)
  Subtropical to warm temperate
• 05Tasman flax lily (Dianella tasmanica)
  Cool temperate to warm temperate
• 06Climbing lily (Tripladenia cunninghamii)
  Subtropical
• 07Slender mat rush (Lomandra hystrix)
  Warm temperate to subtropical
• 08Crow's ash (Flindersia australis)
  Subtropical to tropical
• 09Necklace fern (Asplenium flabellifolium)
  Cool temperate to subtropical
• 10Wonga vine (Pandorea pandorana)
  Subtropical to warm temperate
• 11Small crowea (Crowea exalata)
  Cool temperate to warm temperate
• 12Wallum phebalium (Phebalium woombye)
  Warm temperate to subtropical

Australia's shade plants represent some of the continent's most ecologically valuable species. By choosing plants matched to your climate zone and understanding the specific challenges of your shaded site, you can create a garden space that is not only beautiful but also supportive of local wildlife.

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