If you're not blocked by trees or buildings, etc., you might be surprised what you can grow - including things like lilacs. ;-)

Or clematis:

Or even lilies:

You will need to sortof measure how many hours of sun you do get because believe it or not, it might be a bit too much for some of the shade plants and you will run around trying to find a way to shade those, especially when it starts getting hot. I have had to do that with my fern and hostas, etc.

The lilacs are in 21" containers, ie., my 2 oldest lilacs are 8 years (the pink) and 6 years (the pale lavender) in their containers. I have a baby one that I bought at a flower show 2 years ago (actually purchased as 2, 4" tall ones that I planted together in one container). That is now about 2ft tall in a 5-gallon nursery pot (I just potted it up to that size a few weeks ago - need to take a picture of it because the buds are popping open).

This is my "Miss Kim" (Syringa patula with pale lavender flowers) last year:

This is a pre-bloom pic of my "James McFarlane" (Syringa prestonia with the pink flowers posted earlier) last year:

The poles you see sticking out are plastic bamboo stakes that I have had to use to cover both IF the leaves have popped out and then we get a late frost. Almost yearly, it gets warm enough to pop the leaves and beginnings of flowers on both my lilacs and blueberry bushes and then BAM! Up comes the threat of a late frost. In fact, it's funny but this below picture was taken a year ago today (no frosts predicted this year so far):

In fact, the very first year after I planted my James McFarlane and ignored the possibility that any "frosts" would do harm to my Zone 3 shrub, was the day I woke up the next morning to find that a bunch of my new bloom pannicles and tender new leaf clusters, had turned to mush.

I bought both of these as 2-gallon shrubs that were about 18" tall and I plopped each in their own 21". And they have been there ever since. I used about half a 40lb bag of pure "Container Mix" (that I got from Frank's back then) for each and keep them mulched. I generally fertilize them with shrub food - and most of the ones on the market are the slow-release which makes it easy - you just water during the year. The one thing that people have to remember to do is occassionally water during the winter when the temperatures allow (ie., preferably if it's in the 40s) and if the soil isn't frozen. Also mulch mulch mulch! I use Right Dress licorice root mulch on my big shrubs and replenish it every year.

Lilacs do best with as much sun as you can give them. Where I have mine is the sunniest end of my balcony that gets about 5 - 6 hours summer morning sun and then about 3 - 4 hours afternoon sun as the sun is setting and the rays hit the western corner (I'm the end balcony). This is about a good minimum to get some halfway decent blooms. I know that "Miss Kim" in full sun tends to be completely covered with flower pannicles, where mine obviously isn't. However I do get a pretty decent set of blooms - more than enough to cut for bouquets for inside! YUM!

And Asiralia - I hope you didn't give up on the clematis. They are pretty tough. My oldest one is just now starting to bud and I swear, they will look like DEAD STICKS and then suddenly take off. I remember buying one years ago in a small pot, I forgot to pot it up in a more permanent spot, and it sat out on the balcony in a corner, unprotected and unwatered all winter. When I discovered it the following spring, I thought it was dead until suddenly, out popped new sprouts and vines and after I started watering it, the thing had the nerve to even flower that summer. LOL!

Thanks for sharing how you potted up the lilacs!
Also, I have a clamatis and was ready to throw it out yesterday but thought it a bet early yet and glad I waited to hang onto it because, of the description you mentioned of you clamatis and how it revived it self. Thanks Much for your imformation!

The one on the left (with the brown stems) is my older "Prince Charles" and he was just starting to leaf out then (everything was a couple weeks late here last year due to the weather). The one to the right was a brand new "Madame Julia Correvon" that I had just planted a few weeks before.

Right now, Charles has some buds swelled and starting to open but Julia is sitting there, so I know I'll have some time. I also know that this time of year, we tend to get some late frosts (one is possible tonight), so the less that has budded out, the less I have to cover. As it is, my James McFarlane lilac has some big fat leaf buds starting to burst open and I'm going to have to cover him today (before the winds come... arrrggggg).

zippyag - the plants sound great and people would be surprised at how much can grow in shade gardens. Once one discovers all the possibilities, it's often hard to go back to other types of gardening! LOL I have a neat shade evergreen plant - a dogbane (Leucothoe fontansiana "Girard's Rainbow" with great variegated leaves) I keep it back from the rail with my violets:

Go for the lilacs!! Jenny recommended them to me and mine ( syringa vulgaris ) it´s one of my favourite shrubs at home!!

Ines