Shade Growing Shrubs

There are several excellent shrubs that are shade growing, including Burning Bush, Red Osier Dogwood, Ninebark, Hydrangea, False Spirea, Elderberry and Dwarf Cranberry.

Here are photos and more details on each of these shade growing shrubs.

1. Burning Bush (Euonynymus alata) is an attractive shade tolerate shrub that has won the hearts and admiration of many devoted gardeners.

This showy plant performs well in the autumn months when its colors blend deep crimson with complimentary candy pink. Few other shrubs can match it for its vividness of autumn color.

Although Burning Bush tolerates full shade, it will be more colorful when you plant it in a location that offers some sun.

The correct pronunciation of the latin name is yoo-on-eh-muss. The height of dwarf varieties can be 3 feet and under. Other varieties can grow 10 feet or more in height and be 4-6 feet in width. Has a neat, compact shape.

2. Boxwood (buxus) is a very useful shade growing shrub. It can get by on as little as three hours sun a day, and it is also drought tolerant and deer resistant.

This shade shrub has lots of different varieties. It’s usually called “boxwood” in North America, and “box” in the UK.

Boxwood is often trimmed into shapes for hedges and topiary, but it can also be left to grow naturally. You can see a trimmed boxwood in the photo left.

3. Dwarf Cranberry Bush (viburnum opulus) grows to about 3 feet in height and about 2 feet in diameter. It is hardy and can take any weather in zones 3-8. You can place it in full sun, but it performs better in light shade areas where it receives a bit of protection from the afternoon sun. It grows in a tidy, densely packed globe and you will rarely have to prune this beauty. Lovely textured leaves provide contrast to normal evergreens and the leaves are green with reddish purple veins. This shrub can handle wet and clay soils.

4. Dogwood, Red Osier (Cornus sp) is a shade growing shrub that can grow to heights of 15 feet if left unchecked. You will be pleased with the multi stems it produces which are dark red at first and then fade to an olive color during the summer. In the fall and winter they appear red once again. This plant tolerates freezing temperatures and can also handle almost any soil conditions. This is a shrub valued for the twig coloring, and it can handle shady garden spots.

5. Ninebark (Physocarpus) These shrubs can handle almost every climate condition. Although some do best in zones 3-7 only, many varieties will handle zones 3-9. They are hardy and neatly compact little plants with lovely textured leaves offering purples, greens and occasional gold colors. The will grow to 5-12 feet in height if left to their own devices. Tolerant of many soil conditions, they will handle full to partial shade.

6. Spirea, False (Sorbaria sorbifolia) this is another hardy little shrub that can handle all zones from 2-8. You can place it in full sun or give it partial shade and it will do well. Provide moist, well draining soil and you will have a hardy and happy plant. If the soil is too dry your shrub will be dwarfed in size. This is a multi stemmed shrub that offers you feathery flowers in the summer. The leaves are dark green early in the year and change to mixtures of yellow and green in the fall. You will also be treated to a display of small black fruits that you can see in the fall.

7. Elder (Sambucus)
Hardy to zone 4, elders prefer sandy or loamy soils, but they will grow in clay if they must. It can tolerate wind, but does not tolerate maritime climates. It prefers part shade, and grows clusters of red berries. The flowers have a sweet fragrance, and the berries are similar to red currants. Dark green deciduous leaves turn yellow-green in the fall.

And of course, don’t forget about the large class of Rhododendruns, Azaleas and Camellias that are all good shade growing shrubs.

Photo credit of the burning bush is David Beaulieu and www.landscaping.about.com