Flowering shrubs can bring color, interest and fragrance to your garden even after the spring-blooming forsythia, viburnums and lilacs have had their day.
“There doesn’t need to be a lull until the hydrangeas bloom in late June or early July,” said Spencer Campbell, Plant Clinic manager at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle. Consider planting shrubs that bloom in late spring and early summer. These shrubs will support wildlife with their pollen and fruit and add enchantment to the longer evenings.
Here are some good shrub suggestions from the Plant Clinic. For more ideas, use the Arboretum’s Search Trees and Plants tool (mortonarb.org/search-trees-and-plants) and apply the filter by season of interest.
Carolina allspice (Calycanthus florida): This shrub is known for the distinctive fruity scent of its large, unusual maroon flowers, which is why it is known to some as sweetshrub or strawberry bush. A large plant, up to 10 feet tall and quite wide, it has a dense, rounded habit and lustrous, dark green leaves that turn yellow in fall. Interesting fruits persist into winter. Although it is native to the southeastern United States, as far south as Florida, it is fully winter-hardy in Chicago’s Zone 6 and in the even colder Zones 4 and 5. It will grow in full sun to part shade and tolerates clay soil, though it prefers better drainage. Carolina allspice tends to form colonies in the wild, so remove suckers to keep it under control.
Common ninebark (Physocarpus opulifolia): Ninebark is a large, upright, spreading shrub that has tiny pinkish-white flowers along its branches in late May to June. Dark green leaves turn amber-yellow in fall, showy seed capsules in summer feed birds and peeling bark adds interest in winter. The species is native to the Chicago region and much of the eastern United States. It will grow best in full sun to light shade and tolerates wet to dry alkaline soil, although it prefers good drainage. It should be pruned regularly. Although common ninebark can grow up to 10 feet tall, several cultivars (cultivated varieties) have been developed that are smaller or have wine-red, red-orange or lime-green foliage.
Common elderberry (Sambucus canadensis): This tall, multistemmed shrub, which has broad, flat, lacy white flower clusters in midsummer, works best at the back of a border behind other plants or in a naturalized garden with lots of space. Native to swampy places in the Chicago region, it tolerates both flooding and occasional drought. The blue-black berries are a magnet for birds and other wildlife, and they can also be made into jam or wine.
Dwarf fothergilla (Fothergilla gardenii): Fluffy bottlebrush blooms in late spring and four-season interest on a relatively small plant earn this shrub fans among gardeners. It grows about 2 to 3 feet high and wide with a rounded form. The leaves, blue-green in summer, take on a kaleidoscope of orange, red and yellow color in autumn. Fothergilla prefers slightly acidic soil and a part-shade site, although it can handle full sun if regularly watered. A number of cultivars have been developed from this native of the southeastern United States, such as Blue Mist, with outstanding blue-green foliage; Mt. Airy, a larger plant; and Windy City, with lively fall leaf color. A related shrub, large fothergilla (Fothergilla major), grows up to 8 feet tall, with similar flowers, blue-green leaves and fall color.
Bridal wreath (Spiraea vanhouttei): With arching, fountainlike stems that are covered in showy clusters of tiny white flowers in May, this large shrub is an old-fashioned favorite, often found in masses or hedges in established landscapes around Chicago. It is one of several species of spirea that are useful in gardens. A number are native to Asia, such as the popular Japanese spirea (Spiraea japonica), a low shrub that has pink blooms in late spring and summer, from which many cultivars with foliage and bloom interest have been developed; Korean spirea (Spiraea fritschiana), with white flowers and orange-red fall color; and Nippon spirea (Spiraea nipponica), with graceful spreading branches. There are also native species of spirea, including birchleaf spirea (Spiraea betulifolia), which has white flowers and red, orange and purple fall color, and meadowsweet (Spiraea alba), a mound-shaped shrub with conical white flower clusters. “Flowering shrubs are a great way to add structure, bloom and habitat to your garden,” Campbell said. “There are many options to explore beyond the usual.”
For tree and plant advice, contact the Plant Clinic at The Morton Arboretum (630-719-2424, mortonarb.org/plant-clinic, or plantclinic@mortonarb.org). Beth Botts is a staff writer at the Arboretum.