11 Best Landscaping Shrubs To Grow In Your Yard

The problem is, with the great number of selections available, beginners often need help choosing from among all of the different shrub varieties. For starters, you can narrow your options by focusing on easy-to-grow shrubs that can reliably thrive in your climate. All of the plants listed here are cold-hardy to at least USDA zone 5.

USDA Growing Zones: 4 to 8Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shadeSoil Needs: Rich, well-drained soil

USDA Growing Zones: 5 to 8Sun Exposure: Part shadeSoil Needs: Fertile, evenly moist, well-drained soil

USDA Growing Zones: 3 to 7Sun Exposure: Full sun to part sunSoil Needs: Well-drained, regularly watered soil

USDA Growing Zones: 3 to 7Sun Exposure: Full sunSoil Needs: Rich, well-drained, loamy soil

USDA Growing Zones: 5 to 9Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shadeSoil Needs: Rich, well-drained, slightly acidic soil

The deciduous shrubs, which are known for their flowers. The evergreen shrubs (note that some of these bear pretty flowers, too).

Among the best deciduous shrubs are the various types of rose bushes. The rose has been a favorite for centuries. Like lilac shrubs, rose flowers often combine good looks with a great smell. The only thing that has kept even more gardeners from growing this popular shrub is the belief that roses are hard to grow. If this has stopped you from growing rose bushes, rest assured that some types of roses that are easy to grow are now widely available at nurseries.

USDA Growing Zones: 5 to 11, depending on typeSun Exposure: Full sunSoil Needs: Well-drained, slightly acidic soil

The needled evergreens.The broadleaf evergreens.

An interesting fact about evergreens is that their leaves are not always green in color. Chances are that you have seen King’s Gold, Cripps, Gold Mops, or similar shrubs with golden foliage on other people’s properties. If you are a beginner at gardening, you may not have known the name of what you were seeing, but they are very popular. And for good reason, as their golden foliage really catches the eye. This color also combines well with shrubs of just about any other color, including Blue Star juniper (Juniperus squamata ‘Blue Star’) and red barberry shrubs (Berberis thunbergii) such as ‘Crimson Pygmy’.

USDA Growing Zones: 4 to 8Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shadeSoil Needs: Clay or silty or loamy well-drained soil

USDA Growing Zones: 5 to 8Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shadeSoil Needs: Well-drained, loamy, slightly acidic soil

USDA Growing Zones: 4 to 9Sun Exposure: Part shadeSoil Needs: Cool, rich, well-drained, acidic soil

USDA Growing Zones: 3 to 8Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shadeSoil Needs: Rich, fertile, moist soil

Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus syriacus). Hardy hibiscus (Hibiscus moscheutos).

Rose of Sharon is the taller of the two. In fact, many mistakenly call it a “tree.” By contrast, H. moscheutos is barely a shrub. It dies back to ground level in winter, the way your perennials do. And it takes its sweet time about popping back up out of the ground again in spring. Many beginners panic and think it is dead, but they do not need to worry: New shoots will eventually appear. Both shrubs are late-summer bloomers that help you distribute color in your landscape throughout the year

USDA Growing Zones: 5 to 9Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shadeSoil Needs: Rich soil