10+ Favourite Shrubs

There were moments during the bleak, cold days of early April when I thought that spring would never arrive, but daffodils are poking up out of the ground and blooms are surely only days away. At last long last, spring is here! 

Shrubs have been on my mind as a prune away any dead, diseased or crossing branches in the garden. Here is just a sampling of what I think are the prettiest shrubs available:

Double Flowering Almond, Prunus triloba:

Is a member of the Rosaceae family and is actually a small deciduous tree. It has a vase shape and double pink flowers in early spring. Note: branches are good for forcing indoors.

Height: up to 12' Spread: 12' USDA Zones: 4-8

Planting: 

Double Flowering Almonds can be planted in a range of soils in sun, part-shade and shade. (Mine is in part-shade.)

Care and Pruning: 

Borers can be a problem, so keep your tree healthy and strong to resist attack from these pests. Make sure your Double Flowering Almond has a regular application of some fertilizer and is watered during periods of extended drought. Other pests and problems include Black knot which can cause black swelling of the branches. Foliage is susceptible to powdery mildew, so locate your tree in a area with good air circulation. Do any pruning after your shrub flowers in late spring.

Deutzia x lemoinei 'Compacta': has an upright habit and white flowers in spring. Plant it in sun to part-shade in average garden soil. It likes growing conditions to be on the moist side. Height: 4-6', Spread: the same. USDA Zones: 4-8. No serious diseases or problems. Prune in spring after flowering.

A Lilac in a private garden in Georgetown, ON

Lilac: 

What's a garden without at least one lilac bush? I inherited several lilac bushes when we bought the house and have added more. The one I want to highlight today is a Dwarf Korean Lilac. Why? The fragrance of the flowers is simply amazing!

Dwarf Korean Lilac bloom in late spring with showy clusters of pale lavender flowers. The one I have in the front garden is almost ten years old and is just under 5'. Dwarf Korean Lilac can also be found as grafted standards. 

Height: 4-5', Spread: 4-5'. USDA Zones: 4-8.

Planting a Lilac: 
Plant a Dwarf Korean Lilac in early spring in well-drained soil. They do not like wet feet. Choose a sunny location that gets at least 4 to 6 hours of sun.

Pruning & Care:

A Dwarf Korean Lilac should only require watering during periods of drought. Lilacs are susceptible to powdery mildew, but I haven't had a big problem with powdery mildew so far.

I find my Dwarf Korean Lilacs requires less pruning than traditional lilacs. They bloom on growth from the previous year, so do any pruning after they flower in spring. Remove dead flowers and any diseased or crossing branches. After that, do a little pruning so the shrub keeps a nice shape.

A Fothergilla from the Toronto Botanical Gardens

Dwarf Fothergilla: A big reason this shrub makes it onto my list of favourites is that it provides 3 seasons of interest: white bottle-brush blooms in spring, green leaves in summer and orange leaves in fall. And it's also fragrant. Height: 2-6' depending on the cultivar. Spread: 4'-6'. USDA Zones: 5-8

Planting:

Plant a Dwarf Fothergilla in early spring in moist, well-drained slightly acidic soil. Sun or light shade.

Pruning & Care:

Prune primarily to maintain a nice shape after it flowers in spring.

My garden in June.

Weigela: is a classic shrub. My Mom had an old fashioned pink Weigela that was as dependable as you could ever wish for. The height may vary according to the cultivar you chose. Some Weigela can reach as high as 10' and spread about the same. They like full sun and will grow in a range of soil types, but like so many plants, they prefer well-drained conditions. Prune them after they flower in spring. USDA Zones: 4-8.

Potentilla: Like Spirea, Potentilla have a bad rap from their overuse in commercial landscaping, where they can look a bit dusty and forlorn. One of the reasons they are used in this type of setting is because they are tough as old boots. They can handle heat, drought and poor soil.

I have a white Potentilla and it is just the loveliest shrub. It starts blooming in June and continues to bloom into early fall. Think past the familiar yellow potentilla you see everywhere because, they also come in: white, pink, orange and red. Potentilla like poor soil and full sun. They flower on new wood, so I prune mine after the first flush of flowers in spring. Height and spread depend on the cultivar. My white Potentilla is about 3.5' x 4' and is vase shaped. USDA Zones: 2-7.

My garden in June.

Beauty Bush, Kolkwitzia: This is a really pretty shrub. A Beauty Bush has a fountain shape with branches that hang in long, sweeping arcs. Height: 8-10', Spread: 8-10' USDA Zones: 5-9.

Planting: 

Plant a Beauty Bush in full sun in average garden soil.

Pruning and Care: 

A Beauty Bush has no major pests or diseases. This shrub blooms on old wood so prune in spring after it flowers. Cut old canes to the ground to renew the shrub.

Golden Mock Orange, Philadelphus coronarius 'Aureus' is a compact shrub with fragrant white flowers. The foliage starts off quite yellow and becomes greener over the summer. This shrub has an upright spreading habit and can be grown in moderately fertile, well-drained soil. Full sun to light shade. Prune after flowering as necessary and mature branches by one-third on older shrubs. Height: 6-10' Spread: 6-10' USDA Zones: 3b-8.

Golden Mock Orange has wonderfully fragrant flowers.

Hydrangea paniculata 'Quick Fire': The thing I like best about this hydrangea cultivar is its amazing transitions in color. The buds and first flowers are white. Then they blush into a deep rose.

Finally the rose fades into a warm beige in fall. Height: 4-5', Spread: the same. USDA Zones: 4-8.

Planting: Hydrangea paniculata 'Quick Fire' likes full sun and good loamy soil, but it will happily put up with average garden soil.  This cultivar is not as water dependant as some hydrangeas and will tolerate some drought.

Pruning:  Flowers are produced on new wood. Prune 'Quick Fire' in late winter or early spring.

Rose of Sharon, Althea

Despite being a magnet for Japanese Beetles, I can't imagine being without a Rose of Sharon. They begin to flower in the heat of summer long after most other shrubs have packed it in. 

Flower colors include blue, pink, lavender, and white. Bees and hummingbirds love Rose of Sharon. One drawback is their tendency to self-seed prolifically. 

Height: 8'-12', Spread: 6'-12'. USDA Zones: 5-11

A long view just to give you an idea of shape and size.

My Rose of Sharon

Planting:

Plant them in rich, well-drained soil in sun or very light shade. Rose of Sharon like the soil to be somewhat moist. Too little water may cause buds to drop.

Pruning & Care:

Add a layer of compost in spring and cover it with mulch to help the soil retain its moisture. Water your Rose of Sharon if there is less than an inch of rainfall in a given week. Rose of Sharon shouldn't require much pruning. They flower on the current year's growth, so prune for shape in early spring before leaf buds open.

 

Ninebark, Physocarpus opulifolius 'Dart's Gold': Most often these days you see Ninebark with dark burgundy or copper foliage being featured, so I thought I would highlight a golden-green Ninebark instead. 'Dart's Gold' has maple leaf-like foliage that start off in spring as a golden yellow and then ages into a deep lime-green over the summer. This shrub has small white flowers in clusters.

Height: 5-6', Spread: about the same. USDA Zones: 3-8.

Planting: Golden Ninebark needs full sun to very light shade (at least 6 hours of sun). Average garden soil is fine. Water regularly until your shrub is established.

Pruning: Reinvigorate the shrub each spring by removing some of the older branches at the base. Other than that, prune it after its flowers to maintain its shape.

What do you think? Are there any other shrubs that should have been added to my list?

My Double Flowering Almond

Last year, a heavy rain shower carried off the delicate blooms on my Double Flowering Almond before I had much of a chance to take any pictures. 

So when I noticed yesterday afternoon that it had come into flower, I grabbed my camera as soon as we finished super, and ran out in to the garden determined not to miss it another opportunity.

The Almond is a bit battle-scared and misshapen having once served as a winter food source for some unknown animal and possibly the possum whose bleached, white skull I discovered one spring peaking out from under the garden shed.

It is a tall V-shaped shrub with stiff upright branches, as you see here. 

Now about 5 years old, it stands about 6 feet tall and is about 5 feet at its widest point.

As afternoon quickly became evening, the last of the sun's rays seemed to catch and hold 

on the soft, pink petals.

An Update: What has been happening in my Garden

I tend to be an eager gardener who favours the final few weeks of April to get a jump start on work in the garden. The weather is usually a bit cold, but the chill in the air usually means there are no black flies or mosquitoes to torture me. I also find that most perennials, which are still dormant at the end of April, are to sleepy to notice when I up and move them to a new bed.

This spring was so wet and miserably cold however, I was simply unable to get any kind of a head start on gardening. When the weather finally did warm up, I must confess I felt a bit overwhelmed by all the work that suddenly needed doing. For the first day or so, I wandered around the yard like a lost soul, trying to figure out where to begin.

The daffodils opened up and then it started to rain...

It rained for days. I fell behind even further.

The garden soaked up the rain and plumped out into a lush green jungle.

In the shadow of mature trees, most of the back garden lies in dappled shade. The main border along the right side of the yard is some 5 to 10 feet deep (shrubs at the back, perennials in the foreground).

In the past, I used to start work at the front of the bed. Attempting to add a bit of order and a nice crisp edge always seemed so gratifying. The problem was that, as you can see from the photograph above, by the time I could get to the back of the border, the plants had filled in so much that heading into the flower bed was a bit like setting out on safari.

I am proud to say that this year I mended my errant ways and started at the back of the flower bed.

The rain brought out the tulips and quickly did in my Double Flowering Almond (below).

The ferns were more than happy with the wet weather.

The Circle Garden at the very back of the yard is, at this moment, a sea of Forget-me-nots.

On the long weekend, we worked like fiends on the new raised vegetable beds; digging out sod and laying down weed mat for the paths. The weather on Saturday was good, but on Sunday and Monday, it alternated between hot, humid and raining.  We were both exhausted at the end of each day. (This post is already too long and so I will tackle the subject of the vegetable garden in the coming days.)

For today, I end as I started, with a handful of blooms from our crabapple tree.