Everybody has them. Some are burgundy, while some are variegated with fragrant flowers. I’m talking about shrubs that provide reliable good looks without a lot of work.
Plants that have high impact, are low-maintenance and contribute year-round interest should be the stars of your garden. Perennials are pretty, but shrubs provide long term beauty without all the work.
Here are some shrubs I use often in designs — shrubs I couldn’t live without:
**Shrubs can be problem solvers. Let’s say you have a bare spot between you and the neighbors next door. The neighbors are nice and all, but still, you’d rather they didn’t look right into your kitchen window. You want a shrub with some pizzazz, as you will see it daily when you’re doing dishes. You’d like something different from the usual suspects for screening. A wonderful plant for this spot would be Lophomyrtus ‘Sundae.’ This evergreen myrtle relative grows in full sun or partial shade and requires only moderate watering. Showy, creamy variegated leaves on burgundy stems make this narrow, 8- to 12-foot-tall shrub really stand out in the border. Small white summer flowers are an added bonus.
**Need a fast-growing, deer-resistant, drought-tolerant evergreen shrub for a sunny spot? Luma apiculata reaches 6 to 8 feet tall in no time and can even be trained as a small tree. Dense, deep green leaves, beautiful smooth bark and white to pinkish late summer flowers all make this plant valuable in the landscape. Birds will like the blue-black, half-inch fruits, although they are not especially tasty to us.
**Another shrub to ignite a border with smoldering shades of burgundy and purple is the royal purple smokebush. The stems grow straight up, which makes this plant a useful addition to any border in need of diverse forms. It will grow up to 15 feet tall and wide, but you can keep this drought-tolerant plant in check by cutting back hard each spring after the first leaves break out. Smokebush will send up new growth year after year. If it’s left unpruned, wispy, smoky flower clusters will appear in spring. Even the youngest specimens turn a striking burnished orange-red in fall. They grow in full sun or partial shade.
n What tolerates considerable shade, blooms with fluffy yellow flowers that smell like chocolate or vanilla and is dense enough to make a good screen or informal hedge? Azare dentata grows to 15 feet tall by 12 feet wide and can also be trained as a small tree, if you want. It would combine well with other tall shrubs in the shady border, like Lily-of-the-Valley shrub, podocarpus Maki, hydrangea, Japanese aucuba, mahonia and rhododendron.
There are so many interesting, easy-to-grow shrubs. Any one of those will earn its keep with good foliage, interesting form and low maintenance.
Jan Nelson, a California certified nursery professional at Plant Works in Ben Lomond, will answer questions about gardening in the Santa Cruz Mountains. E-mail her at ja******@*ol.com.
