I have an old “compost” pile, located on the ravine side where previous owners dropped leaves, pine needles, grass clippings, pellet stove ashes, sand from the side of the road, extra soil and branches fallen from the trees. I used good(clean) potion of it in the garden, but leftovers have too much “not compost” inclusions in them, so I decided to make terraces there to hold the soil from going down hill into the creek.
The hill faces east and gets a little bit of early morning sun while sun is still low. It is shaded from sun by big trees until second half of the day, when it gets probably 3-4 hours of the late afternoon sun. Because terraces going down to east they will shade each other for low growing plants. In order for plants to get that afternoon sun I have to plant different height plants on each terrace from low on top to high on the bottom terrace. There are 4 terraces all together ranged from 8’ to 4’ in length and about 2.5’-3’ wide. The top layer already occupied by hostas - it was my attempt to see if they gonna grow in such a strange “soil mix”. They did just fine. So I need to populate another three layers. The plants should be different height, grow well in almost pure compost, preferably accept acid soil(many pines around), accept partial shade and be decorative and flower(or fruit, if that is their decorative value) different time of the year. I also prefer plants that do not spread wide too fast, I have steps down hill next to terraces and do not want them to be blocked. Zone 6.
I already have in mind azaleas, hydrangea, bleeding hearts.
Can you make any other suggestion for me?
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Epigea arbutus, wintergreen, hardy cyclamen, hepatica, ferns, pulmonaria, hellebore, slipper orchid, hybrid mayapple podophyllum, strawberry begonia, japanese anemone, arums, sweetfern shrub, indian pinks, bottle gentian, kalmia, heuchera, sweet box sarcococca. Lot’s of these have showy cultivars!
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wow! some of them I never heard about. What I forgot to say I am in zone 6.
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I’ve grown all of them in eastern KS, they will be easier for you if you’re in New England. I might have slipped a lime lover in by accident, check each first! 
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Strawberries?
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Too dark for them I believe. Also, I am not sure I want to grow edibles on that “soil”. Looking at what I see in it, who knows what I don’t. 
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