Nicole Bradley Kinning is a former garden and home improvement writer for Better Homes & Gardens, where she has also written about pets, beauty and lifestyle topics.
Think again if a plain green bush comes to mind when you picture a shrub. We rounded up some varieties that feature colorful leaves in glowing golden hues, vibrant shades of red, and almost black. Other shrubs have more subtle splashes of white, cream, or gold. Put on a spring-to-fall show in your landscape with these shrubs that offer spectacular foliage (some are even evergreen). polyurethane spring bushings
A North American native shrub, ninebark stands up to heat, drought, and winter cold and is usually ignored by deer and rabbits. Diabolo is a variety that offers beautiful purple foliage that shines in any garden, as well as clusters of white flowers in early summer and attractive peeling bark in the winter. If you're short on space, look for dwarf selections such as 'Center Glow' (6-8 feet tall and wide) or Summer Wine (5-6 feet tall and wide).
Growing Conditions: Plant in full sun or part shade in moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 10 feet tall and wide
Many gardeners have fallen in love with Black Lace elderberry, and it's easy to see why. The shrub offers purple-black foliage that has a lacy texture. It's also a fast grower and, once established, is essentially maintenance-free. The shrub also offers pink flowers in early summer and clusters of berries in fall (if there's a pollinator nearby, such as Black Beauty or Laced Up elderberry). However, both take a backseat to the stunning foliage.
Growing Conditions: Plant in full sun or part shade in moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 8 feet tall and wide
Ideal for back-of-the-border locations, smokebush shows off velvet-purple foliage that turns a rich shade of orange-red in the fall. It also bears fluffy clusters of pink flowers in early summer. The colorful bush is quite easy to grow, thrives in a wide range of soil types, and is deer-resistant. If you want to brighten your landscape, try Winecraft Gold smokebush, which features cheery chartreuse foliage.
Growing Conditions: Plant in full sun or part shade in moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 15 feet tall and wide
Wine & Roses is a medium-sized shrub with colorful foliage and a big impact. The dark purple foliage looks great from spring to fall and is decorated with pink flowers in spring and summer. Deer usually don't eat this weigela type, which also holds up to drought. Plant breeders have created more compact purple-leaf varieties such as Fine Wine (4 feet tall) and Midnight Wine (1 foot tall), as well as types with golden foliage (Sonic Bloom Ghost).
Growing Conditions: Plant in full sun in moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 5 feet tall and 6 feet wide
Growing Conditions: Plant in full sun or part shade in moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 6 feet tall and 5 feet wide
'Dart's Gold' ninebark offers golden-green foliage so yellow as it emerges in spring that many mistake it for forsythia. Like 'Diabolo' ninebark, this variety is very resilient; it's about as close to a plant-it-and-forget-it shrub as you can get. The chartreuse foliage turns a lovely shade of yellow (flushed with bronze) come autumn. It also has better resistance to powdery mildew than many purple-leaf varieties.
Name: Physocarpus opulifolius 'Dart's Gold'
Growing Conditions: Plant in full sun or part shade in lightly moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 5 feet tall and wide
You'll be able to see these dramatic and colorful bushes from a block away. 'Sutherland Gold' offers finely cut, ferny foliage in a stunning shade of chartreuse. It's a perfect plant for part shade and like other elderberries, this shrub produces red clusters of fruit that attract birds.
Name: Sambucus racemosa 'Sutherland Gold'
Growing Conditions: Plant in full sun or part shade in medium to wet, well-drained soil
Size: To 10 feet tall and wide
Name: Chamaecyparis pisifera 'Filifera Aurea'
Growing Conditions: Plant in full sun or part shade in moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 20 feet tall and 7 feet wide
A dramatic shrub because of its shape and color, Tiger Eyes sumac features brilliant golden-yellow foliage in spring and summer that turns blaze-orange in autumn. It has a unique branching habit, too. Plant Tiger Eyes in front of an evergreen with deep green foliage to make its bright color stand out even more.
Growing Conditions: Plant in full sun or part shade in lightly moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 6 feet tall and wide
You'll love Chardonnay Pearls deutzia's rich golden color and small size, so you can mix it with your favorite annuals and perennials or grow it in containers. These colorful bushes offer white flowers in spring, but the foliage steals the show. It develops the best color in a sunny spot. If it gets too much afternoon sun in hot-summer climates, though, the leaves may start to burn.
Growing Conditions: Plant in full sun in moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 3 feet tall and wide
Tough as nails, spireas have become landscape staples in municipal and commercial plantings across many regions of the country. And you can bet a plant that thrives in front of your local gas station will do well in your yard, too. Golden Princess is a step up from most spireas; this beauty offers pink flowers in early summer and golden foliage that doesn't fade in heat. This shrub also puts on a fine display of colorful fall foliage. Unfortunately, Spirea may be invasive in some areas; check for local restrictions before planting it.
Growing Conditions: Plant in full sun in moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 3 feet tall and 4 feet wide
Dappled willow is a fast-growing shrub that's great for making an impact on the landscape. Its blue-green leaves are liberally dappled in pink and white, giving it an airy look. Dappled willow is versatile, loving full sun or part shade and tolerating varioussoil conditions. You'll sometimes find this shrub sold as a standard (in a tree form). It's equally beautiful as a shrub or small tree.
Growing Conditions: Plant in full sun or part shade in moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 6 feet tall and 7 feet wide
Gardeners in the North know this easy-growing shrub as a houseplant, but Southern gardeners are familiar with it as a dense evergreen shrub for part shade. As its name suggests, gold dust plant bears rounded leaves heavily speckled in golden-yellow.
Growing Conditions: Grow in part or full shade in moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 10 feet tall and 9 feet wide
This variegated flowering maple is a colorful evergreen shrub for southern gardeners, but it's commonly grown as an annual or houseplant in the North. It features maple-shape foliage (hence the name; it's not related to maple trees) liberally splashed with golden speckles. You may also enjoy the orange bell-shaped flowers. Put on a big show by growing this plant as an espalier against a fence or wall.
Growing Conditions: Plant in full sun in moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 15 feet tall and 10 feet wide
Variegated false holly is an evergreen shrub with rich green, holly-shaped leaves. They emerge reddish-pink and then fade to show cream, white, gray, and yellow spots. It's a slow grower for sunny areas. Variegated false holly also bears fragrant white flowers, but with such spectacular leaves, you may never notice them.
Growing Conditions: Plant in full sun or part shade in moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 10 feet tall and 9 feet wide
Bearing dark green leaves with stark creamy-white edges, variegated English holly is one of the most show-stopping colorful evergreen shrubs. Holly plants are either male or female; 'Argentea Marginata' is female and will bear red fruits in winter if there's a compatible male variety nearby to pollinate it. English holly may be considered invasive in some areas; check for local restrictions before planting it.
Name: Holly aquifolium 'Argentea Marginata'
Growing Conditions: Plant in full sun or part shade in moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 20 feet tall and 12 feet wide
Thanks to its bright red stems, this shrub puts on an eye-catching winter show. In the spring and summer, Ivory Halo dogwood is adorned by white-edged, blue-green leaves. It has a more compact form than many other red-twig dogwoods, so it's easy to fit in the garden or grow as a hedge. Young stems have the best color; prune out a quarter of the oldest branches every three years to keep your plant bright.
Growing Conditions: Plant in full sun or part shade in moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 6 feet tall and wide
Known for their beautiful blooms, hydrangeas come in scores of varieties. A few up the ante with pretty leaf colors, for example, Light-O-Day, with wonderfully variegated foliage. You can enjoy this colorful bush even when it's not blooming. This variety is a lacecap-type hydrangea that produces bluish flowers in acidic soil and pinkish flowers in alkaline soil.
Growing Conditions: Plant in part shade in moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 5 feet tall and wide
You'll love this variety for its stunning cream-edged leaves and its clusters of fragrant pink flowers in spring. Its low profile makes 'Carol Mackie' perfect for growing along a pathway or in the middle of a perennial border. Daphnes don't like warm temperatures around their roots, so spread a layer of mulch or grow groundcovers around their base to help keep the roots cool in summer.
Name: Daphne burkwoodii 'Carol Mackie'.
Growing Conditions: Plant in part shade in moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 3 feet tall and 4 feet wide
My Monet weigela produces pink flowers in spring, but you may not notice them much because the shrub's blue-green foliage has a wide border of pink-blushed cream. It has a very compact habit, making it an excellent edging plant.
Growing Conditions: Plant in full sun in moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 18 inches tall and wide
Why love fothergilla? There are several reasons: It tolerates shade, has fragrant flowers, offers spectacular fall color, and has a compact size. But you'll probably adore 'Blue Shadow' most for its silvery blue leaves. Pair this beauty with blue-leaved hostas to brighten a shady corner of your landscape.
Name: Fothergilla major 'Blue Shadow'
Growing Conditions: Plant in full sun or part shade in sharply drained soil
Size: To 6 feet tall and wide
Big and bold, 'Antonow's Blue' honeybush is an architectural shrub with steely-blue silvery foliage. The finely divided leaves resemble the plumage of a tropical bird. In spring and early summer, it bears spikes of rusty-red flowers. Northerners sometimes grow this striking shrub as an annual; it makes for an eye-catching container shrub.
Name: Melianthus major 'Antonow's Blue'
Growing Conditions: Plant in full sun or part shade in moist, well-drained soil
steel bushings Size: To 8 feet tall and 6 feet wide