We love flowering shrubs. They add so much style, color, and personality to the landscape, yet they’re so low-maintenance and ask for so little in return! Transform your yard—and increase your property value in the process—by planting some of these dazzling landscape plants this spring.
These Flowering Shrubs Are at the Top of Our List for 2022
Whether you want to add structure to your landscape, create a privacy border, or fill your landscape with spectacular color and texture, these eight flowering shrubs will check all the necessary boxes.
Forsythia
This fascinating shrub explodes with yellow blooms in spring, lighting up the landscape like a blazing golden sun. Its flowers emerge well before the leaves begin to sprout, so there’s nothing but fabulous, fragrant blooms to enjoy in spring. Forsythia blossoms are actually edible, and they’re perfect for making aromatic simple syrups to use in summer cocktails.
Azalea ‘Karen’
We want to add so many stunning azalea varieties to this list, but if we have to choose one, it must be Karen! Unlike the Karen stereotype, this flowering shrub is low-maintenance and won’t cause you any stress. It’s incredibly resilient and reliable, bursting with vibrant lilac purple blooms every spring. While it’s technically an evergreen, this Azalea’s emerald green foliage transitions to a rich burgundy in autumn.
PJM Rhododendron
You’ll love the unique color palette of this distinctive Rhododendron, perfect for hedge borders and foundation planting; purple-pink blooms cluster together in little trusses nestled on a lush mound of dark, dusty green foliage. PJM has evergreen leaves that transition to a warm mahogany tone in fall, bringing fabulous winter interest. This flowering shrub’s exceptional tolerance to sudden shifts to warm and cold temperatures makes them a popular choice for Moultonborough gardens.
Witch Hazel
This deciduous shrub requires little-to-no maintenance. So long as you have a super sunny spot to plant it, you should have no trouble keeping your Witch Hazel happy! Its peculiar yet beautiful blooms have a distinctive, stringy appearance. After it has finished blooming, you can prune off branches from this shrub and boil the bark to create a healing tonic for soothing rashes and bruises or use it as a daily skin toner to improve your complexion.
Lilac ‘Miss Kim’
Nothing beats that unmistakable fragrance of blooming lilac shrubs in spring. It blooms a bit later than your typical lilac; it may continue blooming well into June and early July! It’s more lush and compact than many other lilac shrubs, so it won’t get as many awkward, leggy branches that jut outwards. Miss Kim reaches a maximum size of 9 feet tall and 7 feet wide at maturity, but pruning in late summer after it blooms will keep it to a smaller size if desired.
Pieris
When this Japanese evergreen shrub begins flowering, it always draws gasps of amazement! Its adorable blooms, usually pink or white, dangle downward from long stems, similarly to Lily of the Valley, and its leaves fan outward in a circular fan shape, kind of like an Umbrella tree! Minimal pruning is required, as this shrub generally keeps a tidy, manageable shape that works well for hedges and border planting.
Blue Muffin Viburnum
If you want a flowering shrub with gorgeous color contrast and visual interest in autumn, look no further than Blue Muffin Viburnum! While its lovely white flowers are a delightful sight in summer, its electric blue berries that emerge in autumn really pop against the oranges and golds of the season’s scenery. To increase the volume of berries, plant a different variety of Viburnum shrub nearby to encourage cross-pollination.
Dwarf Korean Lilac
This classic flowering shrub is smaller than most cultivars, reaching a max of 6 feet tall and 7 feet wide. It tolerates full or partial sun, and it appreciates regular watering if you aren’t getting much rainfall. It bursts into bloom in mid-May, with those signature soft purple flower panicles that fill the air with a soothing aroma. Dwarf Korean Lilac is ideal for low hedges that don’t block sightlines.
To explore even more phenomenal flowering shrubs in Moultonborough, visit Stephens Landscaping Garden Center and see all the magnificent varieties ready to be planted this spring. Follow us on Facebook or Instagram for updates and featured products.