Gardening

The spot you're describing sounds perfect for hosta.

My hosta bed is very shady, has soil like concrete, and tends to be fairly dry. Now long established, the size and number of plants discourage much weed germination. The number of varieties is endless, and the clumping nature looks neat and tidy pretty much all the time. I make a couple of passes every summer to pull weeds, and sometimes remove spent flower heads. The plants quickly multiply, and you could cover a large area, using sports from a few plants, in a fairly short time. I have given away hundreds of hosta over the years. I think I saw a seller on ebay earlier in the season selling 100 hosta sports for 9.99. You could have a very impressive display on both sides of the stream. Mix in a few ferns, ornamental grasses (Japanese forest grass, my fave), and you're set.

Disclosure: I tend to not like creeping groundcovers, due to their ground level habit (hard to see), and their creeping nature means they tend to creep into places that they're not wanted.

If you want to go really crazy, turn the area into a fairy garden (my latest gardening obsession).

Okay, I'll shut up now, and go out and work in the yard. Thanks for the inspiration!