The Benefits of Shrubs

Shrubs are a valuable, often underappreciated part of landscapes providing diversity in growth form, foliage, flowers, fruits, and fall color. Proper pruning is essential for long-lived shrubs that are vigorous and healthy.  Improper pruning is a harmful, expensive practice that will reduce flowering and the life of the shrubs.

 Shrub pruning is the most abused and least understood of any landscape maintenance practice.  Proper shrub pruning is the selective removal of stems and branches without changing the overall form of the shrub.  Unfortunately, most people associate shrub pruning with shearing off the current season’s growth. If the overall form of the shrub needs to be changed greatly, it is most likely the shrub is planted in the wrong spot.

Additional comment from The BIG Oak = While most people create shrub plans around flowering specifically, shrubs offer so many more benefits. I often create shrub pruning plans based solely on health. This typically creates healthy shrubs with fruits, fall color AND flowers.

Natural growing Tor spirea
Serviceberry shrub during fall in Minnesota

The 5 F’s of Shrubs; Flowers, Fruits, Fall Color, Form and Foliage

Lilac flower during June in Minnesota

Miss Kim lilac Flowers in June

White berries of grey dogwood in Minnesota

Grey dogwood Fruits (berries) in mid-summer.

Red fall color of Nannyberry shrub in Minnesota

Nannyberry viburnum red Fall color in October.

Purple leaves of smokebush shrub

  • Purple Foliage of a smokebush shrub.

Interesting growth Form of the contorted Filbert.