Shrubs

Rhododendron spp and hybrids   Other Name common rhododendron   Sun Requirements full sun, part sun, part shade   Bloom Period and Seasonal Color Spring in colors such as white, pink, red, purple, and yellow   Mature Height x Spread 3 to 10 feet x 3 to 10 feet   Added Benefits native, attracts beneficials, fall color   Rhododendrons are stalwarts in the New England shrub border. They are one of the few broadleaf evergreen shrubs that have brilliant, spring blooming flowers and are hardy in your climate. I talked about...

Learn about ways to keep your hybrid roses growing strong and pest free. Listen to Podcast: We have a complex relationship with roses. The French novelist Alphonse Karr once said, "Some people are always grumbling because roses have thorns; I am thankful that thorns have roses." But it's not the rose thorns that stick us, it's getting roses to flower consistently each year. Landscape roses such as the Knockout series and species roses such as the Rugosa roses are easy to grow and flower pretty consistently each year. It's the hybrid tea...

Cotinus coggygria   Other Name smoketree   Sun Requirements full sun   Bloom Period and Seasonal Color Early summer with yellow flowers and cream, pink to purple colored plumes   Mature Height x Spread 12 to 15 feet x 10 to 12 feet   Added Benefits attracts beneficials, fall color, drought tolerant, deer resistant   Smokebush is a large deciduous shrub with attractive oval leaves that are green or burgundy depending on the variety. This is a specimen shrub in the landscape or can be used in a hedgerow. The common name refers...

Learn about how to grow spirea shrubs including information on varieties. Listen to podcast: podcast transcript Spirea spp   Other Name steeplebush   Sun Requirements full sun, part sun   Bloom Period and Seasonal Color Midsummer in colors of pink, rose, and white   Mature Height x Spread 3 to 8 feet x 3 to 5 feet   Added Benefits drought tolerant, fall color, deer resistant   Spirea is a broad group of durable, deciduous plants that are well adapted to our New England climate. There are a number of different species...