Perimeter Shrubs

Location

• Perimeter shrubs can take several forms. Entrance plantings' attractive, open foliage can highlight doors. Corner plantings set off the house's edges, with small plants increasing the house's apparent size and large ones minimizing its size. Transition plantings bridge those kinds of plantings, creating an unbroken line of appealing greenery. Other perimeter shrubs emphasize and edge walkways, the driveway and the lawn, and they help separate one area of the yard from another area.

Eventual Size

• Never plant a shrub based on its size when you bring it home from a plant nursery. Instead, plant it based on the size it will grow to eventually. If you like a particular shrub but don’t have room for it, check whether or not it has a dwarf version. Otherwise, a substitute with roughly similar foliage and seasonal characteristics may be available. In order to maintain unity, a bunch of fast-growing shrubs should not be planted with shrubs that grow slowly. Arrange them so their growth rates are roughly even, ensuring your landscape remains in balance.

Seasonal Interest

• When choosing perimeter shrubs, take into account each plant's year-round characteristics. Although certain shrubs may look fantastic together during their spring and summer growth period, you may have a boring yard part of the year if they all lose their leaves at once. Also consider such characteristics as bloom time, fall color, stem color, fruits and wildlife attraction. Varying those characteristics throughout the landscape makes a better garden.

Environmental Requirements

• When shrubs will be planted close to each other, they should have similar environmental requirements. For example, never group shrubs that need full-sun exposure with shrubs that need full shade. Water needs apply as well; if several of your shrubs require consistent moisture, don’t plant a heat- and drought-loving shrub among them. Shrubs that don’t appreciate soggy roots should never be planted beneath a roof overhang or on a drainage plain because they probably will drown.