Shrubs, the Foundation of Your Garden

Right about now is the best time to select shrubs for next year's garden. Shrubs, like trees, can benefit from having a long period to form good roots before being exposed to the harsh, drying sun of summer. And, the plants that go down now are best able to take advantage of peak spring growth periods as well as being available to provide habitat for migratory birds and butterflies during the bulk of their season.

So how to choose? Remember, shrubs are relatively expensive compared to a handful of annual seed thrown on a bare patch of garden and grown to maturity. And they are somewhat less flexible and forgiving of mistakes as well. You will want to do some advance work before you start checking off those boxes on the order forms.

Take an inventory of your growing conditions. What climate zone are you in? Will the shrubs be planted next to sheltering walls that could make the more tender varieties feasible? How about the soil? Is it acidic, neutral, mildly alkaline? Is it well drained? Will you be willing to take the time and energy to correct flaws before planting or are you looking for a tolerant native that will put up with what's already there?

How large will the shrub eventually grow? You don't want it blocking the entrance to your doorway or causing a spite war with neighbors. Neither can it impinge on property lines and drop fruit, leaves or flowers onto the lawns of another to pick up. Most botanical gardens have demonstration areas where you can view the ultimate future of your plant. That fast growing shrub that pleases you the first year when it quickly fills in a bare area may not make you so happy when you are living with your pruning shears.

When do you need to see color? Witch hazels, jasmines and forsythia are sights for sore eyes in the waning days of winter and the first days of spring. Lavenders are beautiful in mid-spring. Correopsis and Geraniums (the true geraniums also known as cranesbills, not the Pelargoniums) are summer standouts. Sumacs lend stunning fall color. And yes, Virginia most sumacs are perfectly safe. There is only one "poison sumac" and you won't find it on sale in your local nursery.

Some shrubs are all-season favorites. Viburnums, bloom in the spring, but are filled with handsome fruit in the Fall and Winter months. Viburnum are also beloved of butterflies and birds.

Maybe you want greenery all year round? Yews, Hollies and dwarf conifers are made for that purpose. But if you have curious children or pets, you may want to skip the yew. It is notoriously poisonous in most of its parts.

How invasive is it? Right now, the government is spending millions trying to eradicate invasive shrubs and ground covers that seemed like a good idea at the time. A famous example is Kudzu, an invasive southern species of vine that was introduced as an anti-erosion measure a generation ago that now threatens to swallow the earth. The shrubbery equivalent is plants like porcelain berry. Beautiful, but now springing up in park areas where they displace more useful plants needed by wild animals for nutrition. Traditional favorites like burning bush, Euonymus alatus may be on the banned list for that reason as well.

Maybe you would like to enhance the beauty of your garden with the the sound of birdsong or the sight of butterflies. In that case, you may want to substitute native plants for flashier Asian varieties less popular with the local wildlife. You may want to look at plants like butterfly bush (Buddleia) for butterflies or shrub roses, echinacea, hollies and a wide variety of fruit producing shrubs that provide valuable nutrition for migratory or overwintering birds in the Fall or Winter

Please note, that if you choose hollies and many other fruit-bearing plants you will need to confirm that you are buying female plants. Some species have both male and female plants, and in some instances it may be necessary to buy at least one male if a nearby neighbor hasn't already obliged.

Do you have children or pets? I earlier recommended Yew, with a caution, but that is not the only plant that may be best suited for adult-only or no pet households. The entire hydrangea family is a knockout with a wide variety of colors and floral types ranging through the traditional mop tops, and lace caps to more exotic types like Oak-leaved (Quercifolia), but the entire family is riddled with cyanide as well.

Likewise some of the stone fruits like cherries can be problematic if pits are consumed.--a real consideration if you have tykes that put everything in their mouths. You may also be careful with the mulches that you use to protect those newly-planted shrubs. Cocoa hulls are off-limits to dog owners.

Pay careful attention to what growing conditions you offer, how much time you have to spend maintaining your shrubs, and what you want to achieve, and you will be blessed with terrific results.

Sources:
landscaping.about.com/cs/landscapecolor/a/fall_shrub_vine.htm
www.burpee.com/
www.bbg.org/

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