turkeytaker's Under crape garden

The previous (original) owners of the house really like soldier rows. They planted about eight crape myrtles in a soldier row on one side of the yard. They’re now big, beautiful trees, and cast a lovely dappled shade along the edge of the yard. We also get the runoff from the neighbors’ yards in that area before it reaches the french drain.

My intention for this area is to turn it into an informal shade garden with lily of the valley and bleeding heart around the base of the trees. I’d like to also play with other shade plants, but I figure that’s a good start and a way to get the area looking relatively ‘done’ for the short term.