Oops, above, "Nobody rakes them up out in the wild. " I meant leaves, which I didn't make clear.
Taking some cues from mother nature, here are plants I've seen growing in forest with primarily hemlock trees in OH, Z6. I wasn't much into shrubs back then, don't remember getting or having any besides Hydrangea. If you can get your soil to stop being so dry, that could be something to consider, they don't like to dry out, as you probably know. Hopefully someone with more shade shrub experience in your zone would have some other ideas.
Hostas
Columbine
Dogwood (a small tree)
Jack-in-the-pulpit
Maianthemum
Trillium
Violets
Other shade plants I enjoyed when I lived in OH, Pulmonaria, Polemonium, Bergenia, Lamium, Veronica, Alchemilla, Hellebore... You can try 1 or 2 of things you think you might like, see how they do, get more if you're happy with them.
