Leatherleaf mahonia is the structural answer for deep shade, with coarse, spiny, blue-green leaflets held in stiff horizontal tiers on upright canes to 6–10 feet tall and only 4–5 feet wide. Its late-winter spikes of yellow flowers are followed by blue-black berries that the birds take.

Plant it in part to full shade, where few other evergreens give this kind of structure. Set it at the back of a shady border or along a north-facing wall, and give it room, since its architecture is the point.