Flowering shrubs take center stage in summer – and for good reason. While painting the garden with bold color and irresistible fragrance, they serve as living architecture in the landscape and strong allies in sustainable gardening.
A food source for nature’s pollinators, and shelter for birds and wildlife, flowering shrubs anchor garden beds and soften edges around foundations, patios, fences, ponds and fountains. Many varieties bloom for weeks in spring and summer, then continue their show in fall with encores of interesting foliage and striking color.
Surprisingly low maintenance once established, most flowering shrubs then need only seasonal pruning and occasional water. They thrive in designed landscapes and naturalized spaces.
Their resilience makes them ideal for a wide range of sites, including those with tough soil or inconsistent rainfall. Whether used as privacy screens, mixed border companions or focal points in the garden, flowering shrubs are “summer specials” that bring lasting value to the landscape year-round.
We grow a variety of perennial plants and trees at Loma Vista Nursery, as well as flowering Rushrubs for Midwest garden centers, landscape contractors and wholesale distributors. Here are a few of the “summer specials” leaving our loading dock this season.
Dark Knight Bluebeard (Caryopteris x clandonensis ‘Dark Knight’)
Dark Knight Bluebeard
Dark Knight Bluebeard produces true-blue flowers in late summer. This compact caryopteris has deep indigo blooms that attract bees and butterflies. Native to Asia and long favored for its drought tolerance and deer resistance, Dark Knight caryopteris prefers full sun and well-drained soil. Its aromatic foliage adds another layer of sensory appeal. Give it a light pruning in early spring to maintain its shape.
Ruby Spice Summersweet (Clethra alnifolia ‘Ruby Spice’)
Ruby Spice Summersweet
Another fragrant summer shrub is Ruby Spice Summersweet. Native to the eastern U.S., this clethra cultivar is beloved for its spicy-sweet pink blooms in mid to late summer. Summersweet thrives in partial shade and in moist, acidic soils, making it a good choice for rain gardens, woodland edges or around ponds and natural pools. Clethra is a pollinator magnet and is surprisingly tolerant of both wet feet and summer heat. Little maintenance is needed beyond late-winter cleanup to remove old wood.
Red Pillar® Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus syriacus)
Red Pillar® Rose of Sharon
With its chin-raising vertical drama, long-blooming Red Pillar® Rose of Sharon offers a unique perspective on the classic rose mallow. This columnar hibiscus adds height up to 16 feet without taking up too much ground space. Its narrow 5-foot spread makes it ideal for tight borders, tricky corners and urban gardens. Missing the tropics? Red Pillar’s enormous red-and-white flowers are as tropical-looking as they are tough, attracting hummingbirds and pollinators while withstanding summer sun, clay soil and urban pollution. A hard prune in early spring encourages new growth and better flowering.
Fizzy Mizzy® Sweetspire (Itea virginica)
Fizzy Mizzy® Sweetspire
Fizzy Mizzy Sweetspire is known for its fun bottlebrush blooms and fiery fall color. Fragrant white flower spikes emerge on this compact shrub in late spring and continue blooming into early summer. With a 2- to 3-foot height and spread, this sweet little native shrub is perfect for foundation plantings and smaller garden beds, where it stays tidy and manageable. This sweetspire grows best in partial sun to light shade and tolerates moist to average soils. Bees love the flowers. Deer typically steer clear.
Sonic Bloom® Wine (Weigela florida)
Sonic Bloom® Wine
Sonic Bloom® Wine weigela produces waves of bubblegum pink flowers and dark burgundy foliage from late spring through fall. Sun-loving, the shrub tolerates heat and moderate drought once established. It puts on its best show in a planting location that has good air circulation and well-drained soil. Hummingbirds are especially drawn to this weigela’s trumpet-shaped blooms. Dark foliage adds contrast to nearby lighter-colored plantings throughout the season. Bonus: there’s no need to deadhead this shrub!
Brandywine™ (Viburnum nudum)
Brandywine™
At 5- to 6-feet tall and wide, Brandywine™ viburnum adds structure plus refined, multi-season interest to the landscape. Glossy, deep green foliage sets the stage in spring for creamy white flower clusters in early summer. A food source for pollinators and birds, flower clusters mature into show-stopping berries that shift from pink to blue as the season progresses. Foliage turns wine-red in fall. Its tidy form and strong resistance to pests and diseases make it adaptable in a variety of landscape conditions. The shrub thrives in sun to partial shade and tolerates moist soils, making it a natural fit for rain gardens or low-lying areas.
Learn More About Loma Vista Nursery’s Landscape Plants
Loma Vista Nursery grows flowering shrubs, perennial plants and trees for Midwest independent garden centers, landscape contractors and wholesale distributors. Our team of plant experts helps people learn about plants and the healthy varieties we grow.
Ordering is underway for the trade industry! Review Loma Vista Nursery’s plant catalog for information and visit our website to learn about our values and best practices as a wholesale Midwest plant grower. For help with orders and plant-related questions, send an email to sales@lomavistanursery.com or call (785) 229-7200.
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