Start planning your spring garden now for gorgeous summer blooms.
One of the best ways to ensure your yard looks bright and full of blossoms is by planting flowering shrubs. Regular flowers and non-blooming plants have their place in your garden bed, but bushes that bloom add so much volume and can really make your house stand out. Of course, as with any plant you’re considering adding to your garden, you need to be familiar with the level of care needed and whether they can actually thrive in your USDA Hardiness Zone. To make things easier on you, we’ve compiled a list of the best flowering shrubs to plant with these zones in mind.
Not only do flowering shrubs look beautiful, but they also attract important pollinators to your yard. And if you plant them strategically, they can even serve as an extra privacy barrier. It’s no surprise that these bursts of blooms are some of landscape designers’ favorite plants to work with, especially since there are so many varieties in all different sizes and colors. Keep reading to learn more about the best flowering shrubs you should know about.
Even in the most agreeable environments for flowering shrubs, there's not one variety that blooms all year long. Since plants have growing cycles, it used to be much more challenging to find shrubs and other perennials that leave you with blooms all spring, summer, and autumn long. However, thanks to plant breeders, there are now many kinds of flowering shrubs that rebloom throughout the season or are longer lasting. Hydrangeas, azaleas, and lilacs are all options that have reblooming varieties.
In short: Yes, many flowering shrubs can thrive in full sun! However, that's not the only aspect you must keep in mind when choosing which ones to plant in your yard. The USDA Hardiness Zone you live in is extremely important when it comes to knowing which shrubs will be able to thrive outside your home. Plus, you should always research the variety of flowering shrubs you're interested in first to make sure you know how much water it needs, the type of soil it grows well in, and whether or not it will rebloom.
Keep reading to find a list of 30 flowering shrubs that will bring so much life to your outdoor space, transforming your yard into a botanical paradise.
Additional copy by Arricca Elin SanSone.
Mountain laurel, also known as Kalmia latifolia, is a beautiful evergreen shrub that's also the state flower of Connecticut and Pennsylvania. The white or pale pink bell-shaped flowers start as deep pink buds, which emerge in late spring to early summer. Even after the petals fall off, this beautiful shrub remains stunning thanks to its glossy leaves, which transition from light green to a deep purplish hue throughout the year.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 4 to 9
Native to both China and Japan, this striking flowering shrub produces bright yellow blooms that resemble a cross between a pom-pom and a rose. The Japanese kerria first blooms in the spring amongst light green leaves, and as the seasons continue to change, the flowers fall off, and you're left with bright green stems in the winter.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 4 to 9
This popular flowering shrub comes in a variety of shapes and sizes, blooming primarily in the spring. Most of these stunning azalea bushes are evergreen, and their funnel-shaped blooms come in a range of colors, such as pink, white, red, and purple.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 4 to 10
Flowering quince is a wonderful addition to your garden or yard if you want early blooms, as this shrub flowers in early spring. The petals are very vibrant, especially next to the dark green foliage, and come in a range of hues from bright scarlet-orange to crisp white to a loud pink.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 5 to 9
This evergreen flowering shrub produces small, fragrant clusters of pale pink flowers starting in late spring, which then turn into tiny red fruits in the fall. Carol Mackie shrubs are rather short and prefer partial shade. While they're delicately beautiful, they're extremely toxic if ingested.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 4 to 8
If you want an extremely fragrant flowering shrub that smells like orange blossoms with a hint of pineapple, consider planting mock orange in your yard. This shrub blossoms for several weeks in late spring to early summer, producing elegant white flowers that cover the entire plant.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 4 to 9
The dangling bell-shaped flowers of the Japanese andromeda plant are what make it so desirable. Blooming in pink or white in early spring, this flowering shrub is evergreen and makes for an elegant addition to any garden.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 5 to 8
The Nanking cherry is a winter-hardy flowering shrub with beautiful flowers that turn into delicious fruits. The petals start as pink buds, then unfold into fragrant white flowers that last from early spring to early summer before transforming into red cherries.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 2 to 7
Before the American cranberrybush shows off those vibrant red fruits, it produces delicate white florets surrounded by larger white flowers. It would look lovely in any part of your yard, though we recommend planting it somewhere it can easily be seen, as it's stunning in all four seasons.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 2 to 7
The flowering currant is a medium-sized shrub that produces beautiful clusters of drooping flowers starting in early to mid-spring. The petals are typically a pink or red hue, which then turn into small, dark blue edible berries. Because these shrubs flower so early, they provide early nectar for butterflies and hummingbirds to enjoy.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 6 to 8
Ceanothus, or the California lilac, is a flowering shrub native to North America. They're fast-growing and very eye-catching thanks to their clusters of tiny purple flowers and lovely dark green foliage.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 7 to 10
With star-shaped blooms and pointed, dark green leaves, the Japanese dogwood shrub is very striking. The petals are creamy white, turning into pinkish-red fruits in the summer and throughout the fall. It is a flowering shrub that will be beautiful all year, despite having no flowers or leaves in winter.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 5 to 8
Similar to hibiscus, the lavatera plant produces showy, large funnel-shaped flowers in shades of pink, purple, and white. They're in the mallow plant family, and depending on the species you get, they can grow anywhere between two and three feet to 10 feet tall.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 6 to 8
The flowers that bloom from the fuchsia plant are extremely unique and ornamental, making them stunning choices for your garden. This flowering shrub first blooms in late spring and goes into early fall, with some varieties blooming year-round depending on conditions.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 6 to 11
Related Story:How to Grow Fuchsia Plants That’ll Thrive in a Shady Garden
This evergreen flowering shrub produces flowers in a range of hues, from white to purple, with bright golden stamens that bloom in the spring and summer. The rockrose, also known as Cistus, loves full sunlight and is fairly drought-resistant once established.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 8 to 10
The tubular flowers of this spring-blooming shrub are much loved by hummingbirds. The graceful arching shape looks wonderful if you give it plenty of space to spread. Reblooming types will bloom again sporadically throughout the summer.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 4 to 8
The gorgeous blooms of camellias almost don't look real! This evergreen shrub flowers from late winter into summer, depending on the variety. Read the plant tag or description so you'll know what you're buying.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 7 to 10
Related Story:15 Types of Camellias That Bloom in the Most Gorgeous Colors
Just when you've had enough of winter, the bright yellow blooms of forsythia appear even before the foliage. This easy-care shrub makes a great (and inexpensive) privacy screen, too. Look for a more compact size if you have a smaller garden.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 4 to 8
As you might suspect, this fast-growing shrub attracts tons of butterflies and other pollinators. Newer types are not invasive and are also more compact, ranging from a foot tall to four or five feet tall.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 5 to 9
Roses aren't as finicky as you might think. Shrub roses are some of the easiest types to grow, and new varieties are more cold-hardy and disease-resistant, too.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 5 to 11
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