15 Small Bushes For Landscaping That Can Add Color To Any Yard

Small flowering bushes can add color to your yard, and if you're looking for a way to make your yard stand out from the rest, these 15 small evergreen shrubs are just what you need.

From beautiful flowers to unique foliage and berries, these plants will help you create a landscape that's truly one of a kind.

1. Dwarf Butterfly Bushes

The dwarf butterfly bush, or Buddleia davidii, is a beautiful and hardy shrub that's been used in landscaping all over the world. It grows well in full sun to part shade and can be used as accent plants or small shrub borders.

The dwarf butterfly bush is native to China, where it's commonly used for its medicinal properties.

This bush was once known as the "butterfly flower," which explains why they're so popular amongst urban and suburban gardeners—they attract butterflies!

If you want something different than your typical green-and-yellow butterfly bush variety, try purchasing some of these dwarf varieties instead:

• Purple Pixie (Buddleia purpurea)

• Red Pagoda (Buddleia davidii)

• White Dazzler (Buddleia davidii)

• Cream Beauty (Buddleia lindleyana)

2. Dwarf Hydrangea

The dwarf hydrangea is a shrub that grows up to 4 feet tall and wide, with large, showy flower clusters. It's native to Japan and Korea and hardy to zone 3.

If you're looking for a small bush that will add color to your yard but won't take over all the space (that's what my husband thinks anyway), then this might be just what you need!

3. Forsythia Dwarf Shrubs

Forsythia is a popular shrub that can be found in many yards across America. It's a deciduous shrub that can grow up to 20 feet tall and wide, with small white flowers in early spring. It's hardy to zone 5 and is native to China.

If you're looking for an evergreen bush with small, yellow flowers and dense evergreen foliage, then the dwarf evergreen varieties of forsythia are a perfect choice.

It thrives in full sun or partial shade and can be pruned to maintain its size and shape if need be.

4. Pieris Japonica

Pieris Japonica is a small flowering shrub with fragrant white flowers. It can be used as an accent plant or in mass plantings. The Pieris Japonica is an excellent choice for rock gardens or raised beds, where it will grow to about 2 feet tall and wide.

The leaves are dark green and glossy above, with silver undersides that turn red in fall before dropping off.

This deciduous shrub thrives in partial shade to full sun locations on well-drained soil that stays moist but not wet during the growing season.

However, it will tolerate some dry soil conditions once established. Its hardiness varies depending on the variety range from zone 5-8.

5. Dwarf Azalea

The dwarf azalea is a great choice for anyone looking to add some color to their yard. This shrub is native to Japan, China, and Korea, but can be grown in the United States with relative ease.

The dwarf azalea grows best in USDA zones 5-9, so if you live in one of those regions this plant may be a good fit for your yard!

The dwarf azalea has small leaves that are dark green on top and silver underneath. This beautiful shrub has white or pink flowers with some red or purple mixed in depending on the species you choose.

This means that there are many different varieties available from which to choose depending on how many colors you want!

6. Ming Aralia

The Ming aralia is an evergreen shrub that grows easily in most soil conditions. It has dark green leaves that are glossy and small white flowers with a delicate vanilla scent.

The plant can grow up to three or four feet tall and wide, making it a useful foundation plant. The Ming aralia is also popular with birds who love to use its branches as nesting spots!

7. Hydrangea Petiolaris

The Hydrangea Petiolaris is a small shrub with medium to low maintenance and blooms in late spring. It has a semi-prostrate growth habit, which means it will grow outward from its center, but will also grow upward up to three feet tall.

The flowers are white and have an average of five petals per flower. This variety can be used as a border or hedge and is great for attracting butterflies to your yard!

It can be grown in full sun or partial shade and features yellow flowers that are a great contrast to its blue-green foliage. This dwarf variety of hydrangea is small enough for any yard, but still provides plenty of colors when it blooms.

8. Dwarf Pittosporum Tobira

Pittosporum Tobira is a dwarf shrub that can be found in many yards. It has been around for decades but it is still quite popular, probably because of its small size and ability to provide color during the winter months.

The plant itself can reach up to 3 feet in height and width, but it usually stays smaller than 2 feet tall. The leaves are dark green with white undersides and give off a blue hue when they reflect light from the sun or moonlight at night.

The flowers are purple-blue in color and last for about 2 weeks before falling off the plant after blooming which happens in June through August if you live in USDA Hardiness Zones 7b – 10 only (USDA Zone Map).

9. Dwarf Tea Olive

If you’re looking for a small shrub that can add some color to your yard, the dwarf tea olive is a perfect choice. This evergreen plant has dense foliage and yellow flowers that bloom in springtime.

It’s native to Japan, so if you live in an area with a similar climate it will thrive there as well. The height of this shrub ranges from three to six feet tall and its width ranges from three to six feet wide at maturity.

10. Bird's Nest Spruce Evergreen Shrubs

This is a great option for those who want a low-growing shrub that will serve as an excellent foundation planting or ground cover. The bird’s nest spruce is dense and evergreen, so it can withstand some frost without any issues.

It has lovely dark green leaves that create a nice contrast against lighter-colored plants in the garden.

This shrub can be used both as a privacy screen and to accentuate other landscaping features such as patios, driveways, and walkways.

If you have room in your yard for this type of plant, then I highly recommend adding it to your landscape design plan!

11. Blue Mist Spirea

If you want a small shrub that will add color to your yard, look no further than Blue Mist Spirea. This deciduous shrub has beautiful colorful foliage in spring and summer and remains evergreen during the winter.

The best part about this bush is that its drought tolerant, so you don't have to worry about watering it often.

It also grows very slowly—you can expect it to be three feet tall by three feet wide within three years of planting.

12. Boxwood

Boxwood is a low-maintenance shrub that grows best in partial shade. Boxwood makes an excellent foundation planting and can be used as hedges and windbreaks. Boxwoods are slow growing, but they can grow to be quite large if given enough space.

Boxwoods are drought-tolerant plants, making them an excellent choice for those who want to save water. This shrub will also do well in most soil types, except for very sandy soils with poor drainage that won't hold much moisture.

If you're looking for a plant that won't require much care or maintenance, then boxwood may be just what you're looking for!

Boxwoods have been grown in Europe since Roman times when they were originally planted along streets as borders between properties where people would walk on foot or ride horses through town without having their clothes get dirty from walking through mud puddles created by rainwater runoff (you know how dirty streets get).

13. Dwarf Lemon Tree

A dwarf lemon tree is the perfect addition to your yard if you're looking for something that can give you a lot of bang for your buck.

This small tree grows only about 10 feet tall, but it produces fragrant white flowers in the spring and small yellow-green fruits that are delicious when juiced or made into lemonade.

Though these trees will survive in full sun or partial shade, they produce more fruit when planted in full sun. Lemon trees grow best in well-drained soil with ample water throughout the growing season (but not too much).

14. Beautyberry Bush

The beautyberry bush is a small tree that produces beautiful purple berries, which are edible and make a great addition to salads or smoothies.

These gorgeous small shrubs grow best in full sun and moist soil with plenty of organic matter added before planting. They will tolerate partial shade but may not produce as many berries.

Beautyberry is also drought tolerant, making it ideal for foundation planting and in areas where water is limited.

When planted near a house, the beautyberry bush can help provide some shade during hot summer days while also providing color through its purple berries and green leaves all year round.

15. Barberry

Dwarf barberry is a small evergreen shrub with fragrant white flowers that will light up your yard in late winter and early spring. It grows to about 2 feet tall and wide, making it a great choice for smaller landscapes or areas where space is limited.

It can be grown in partial shade or full sun, but it prefers moist soil conditions, so make sure to water regularly during hot summer months. Barberry is also drought-tolerant and deer resistant, making it an excellent choice for any home!

Dwarf flowering shrubs can make a big impact on your landscape!

If you're looking to add color and texture to your yard, but don't want the hassle of dealing with heavy plants or large trees, dwarf evergreen shrubs are an ideal choice. They provide beauty without taking up too much space and maintenance time.

Small flowering shrubs are another option that fits this description perfectly: they're compact enough not to take up too much space, but still offer colorful flowers for months on end throughout the warmer months of summer and fall.

So, now you know about 15 small landscaping shrubs. They are all easy to grow and can easily be added to any area of your lawn or garden.

Finally, if you're looking for the advice of some plant experts, don't hesitate to contact ShrubHub today! You can also get up to 70% off on your first landscaping project!

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