The 23 Best Flowering Shrubs for Year-Round Color and Curb Appeal

Hydrangeas produce massive flower heads that change color based on soil chemistry. Acidic soils yield blue blooms, alkaline delivers pink, and white varities stay neutral regardless of pH. Modern reblooming varieties bloom from June through October, producing both the classic mophead clusters and delicate lacecap flowers that butterflies devour. Plant them where they’ll get morning sun and afternoon shade, then watch neighbors slow their evening walks to stare.

This spring shrub features gracefully arching branches that become smothered in trumpet-shaped flowers that are hummingbird magnets. The tubular blooms come in shades from soft pink to deep burgundy, with some varieties offering variegated foliage that extends the visual interest well beyond blooming season. Plant in full sun to partial shade and prepare for all the birds.

Modern butterfly bushes have all of the wildlife-attracting magnetism of their invasive predecessors, but in well-behaved, compact packages that won’t take over your entire garden. These fragrant spikes in purple, pink, white, and yellow create a non-stop butterfly and bee festival from summer through fall.

Azaleas make spectacular displays look completely effortless. These mostly evergreen plants produce masses of funnel-shaped blooms in vibrant colors like electric coral, hot pink, white, and deep burgundy. Most modern varieties are reblooming, and they prefer acidic soil and partial shade.

Nothing announces spring’s return quite like the perfume of lilac blooms wafting through open windows on warm evenings. These old-fashioned favorites produce cone-shaped flower clusters in classic purple, soft pink, white, and rare yellow varieties. The fragrance is so good it’s inspired countless perfumes, candles, and romantic poetry, yet nothing beats the real thing.

For impatient gardeners who absolutely cannot wait for spring to fully arrive, flowering quince delivers instant gratification with vibrant blooms in scarlet-orange, pristine white, and electric pink that appear on bare branches in early spring. The flowers often appear before the last frost, proving this shrub’s incredible hardiness and determination to brighten the world. Thorny branches provide excellent nesting sites for birds, making it both beautiful and wildlife-friendly.

With over 150 species in this incredibly diverse family, viburnum offers something for everyone. Many produce intensely fragrant white flower clusters that can perfume entire garden rooms, followed by berries in shades of red, blue, or black that turn gardens into bird magnets and provide stunning fall and winter interest. Some varieties are evergreen, others deciduous, with options ranging from compact three-foot specimens to towering fifteen-foot privacy screens. The variety is so extensive you could plant nothing but viburnums and create a garden that’s never boring and always beautiful.

Before a single leaf appears, flowering almond transforms itself into a pink cloud of double blooms covering every branch from top to bottom. The show is relatively brief but so spectacular that it’s worth waiting eleven months for those two magical weeks.

Japanese andromeda brings some Victorian elegance and refinement to the garden with its dangling clusters of bell-shaped flowers in pink or white that bloom during early spring. This evergreen shrub has an understated sophistication that appeals to gardeners who appreciate refined beauty over flashy displays, with glossy leaves that provide year-round structure and interest. New growth often emerges in shades of bronze or red.