Flowering shrubs are an excellent addition to any yard. They add structure and depth to your landscaping, they can be used for hedging or as accents, and when in flower, they add gorgeous color and even fragrance to your yard!
Here are a few of our favorite flowering shrubs that thrive in Central Iowa.
Summersweet
Aptly named, Summersweet features clusters of sweetly fragrant white flowers that open in the middle of summer. It’s perfect for full to part sun conditions and grows up to 4′ high and wide.
Rhododendrons
Evergreen shrubs feature purple or pink flowers that open in mid- to late spring, depending on the variety. These shrubs do well in part shade to mostly shade. They range anywhere from 5′ tall and 5′ wide to 2′ tall and 3′ wide.
Forsythia
Thousands of bright yellow flowers cover forsythia shrubs every spring; it’s a real showstopper! Be sure to choose an Iowa flower bud hardy variety. These do well in full sun to part sun and grow to be about 4-5′ tall and wide.
Hydrangeas
These are an excellent choice for large beautiful blooms in the summer season. Some Hydrangeas like the full sun while others are better suited to the shade. Colors range from pink to white and even blue, depending on the variety and the soil pH. They range in size from 3′ tall and wide to 5′ tall and wide.
Weigelias
An awesome late spring bloomer, tiny trumpet-shaped flowers cover these shrubs around May each year. Hummingbirds enjoy these blooms. Some Weigelias are up to 6-7′ while others are short and compact, staying closer to 4′ tall and wide. Flower colors range from pinks to reds to white.
Lilacs
Known for their marvelous fragrance, these shrubs can perfume an entire yard with a sweet scent that seems to float on a light spring breeze. Some get rather tall—up to 12′!—and would work great as a privacy screen. Dwarf varieties stay closer to 4-5′ tall and wide. Most lilacs like full sun, but can tolerate up to half the day in the shade.
Viburnums
While some are grown for their fall leaves, many Viburnums have beautiful flowers. Some varieties are fragrant, others are not, and some have unique flower clusters that look almost like snowballs. Viburnum’s clusters of flowers coat the shrub during spring to early summer. Spring bloomers are quite fragrant, similar to Lilacs. Viburnums range from 3-4′ tall up to 12′ tall, depending on the variety. They are quite adaptable and will enjoy full sun or mostly shady conditions.
Hardy Hibiscus
If you are looking for a shrub with extra-large dinner-plate-sized flowers, this is it. Hardy Hibiscus shrubs have blooms that look like they belong in the tropics. These shrubs need a little extra patience in the spring as they can be late to come up. The colors are usually two-toned, with one color on the outside and another in the inner part of the flowers. Color options range from white to pink to red. These beauties really love a hot, full sun location! They get to about 4-5′ tall and bloom in the middle to end of summer.
If you’d like to add any of these beautiful flowering shrubs to your yard this summer, give us a call, or stop by the garden center to pick out the ones you love the most.
