Landscape Design - Uses and Colors of Shrubs and Vines

In a landscape design shrubs and vines can be upright, weeping, rounded or spreading.The landscape design shapes will depend on how you want to use that particular plant in the garden.

For example the upright bayberry hedge is a good plant to use for a windbreak. An English boxwood which is rounded and will withstand a bit of pruning is a good hedge for a low boundary. If you have the room and you want to cover up a compost pile or anything that is an eyesore in the garden you can plant an evergreen shrub such as a myrtle, rhododendron, holly, yew, mountain laurel or any upright form of the juniper. A deciduous shrub will take care of the problem in the summer but when the branches are bare in the other seasons it loses its effect. There are many types of ground covers, shrubs, and vines that can be used as a disguise in the yard or garden. The chain link fence that runs across the back of your yard will somehow disappear if you cover it with Wisteria floribunda.

There are evergreen varieties of English ivy that will work in milder climates or they can create a living backdrop for flowers and plants as it climbs a block wall. An evergreen honeysuckle, if trained on a trellis, can hide the compost pile, the trash cans, or a tool shed plus it will fill the air with a beautiful aroma. There are other shrubs such as lilacs, some viburnums and mock orange that have delicately scented flowers that will work well on the patio, pool area, or under windows.

The shady areas of the garden should not be a problem as long as you use the right type of shrub. Hydrangea and witch hazel are two such shrubs that prefer to have partial shade. There are others such as magnolia, skimmia, daphne, and many viburnums that will do very well without having the benefit of full sun.

Shrubs are also a major part of your garden's color scheme, and because they are normally permanent fixtures, the placement of your shrubs should be carefully planned. You need to decide before planting whether the shrubs that are sitting next to each other are going to bloom at the same time and if their colors will look good together. You need to choose among the evergreens that have occasional berries and flowers, and the changing deciduous shrubs; and decide whether you want the two types planted in separate groups or blended together. The color combinations of shrubs are almost infinite, and in choosing one as opposed to another the gardener becomes a landscape artist. The choice of colors is a matter of your own personal taste.

Gray foliage and white flowers work particularly well when planted near water. These types of shrubs are useful in separating brightly colored shrubs that may end up clashing. A combination of white- and blue-flowered shrubs planted next to a brick wall make a wonderful contrast. This effect can be done placing together one or more plants each of a white- and blue-flowered butterfly bush which will bloom towards the end of summer. Instead of planting together shrubs with strong color contrasts it is better to opt for a toning sequence of colors such as shades of gray, silver, and pink, or maybe a mixture of mauve, blue, purple, rose, and white.

Sometimes the bright effects should not be forgotten in your landscape design. For instance the bright purple or red flowers of the spring heath when used as a ground cover underneath the bright yellow flowers of the witch hazel, makes a beautiful splash of color in the later days of fall and into winter when there is very little color left in the garden. The clever us of color can make appealing visual effects and alter the perspective of a garden. If you use soft colors close to the end of your garden it will give an illusion of depth and make the boundary lines of the garden disappear. Shrubs of different colors, shapes, and textures can blend very well in almost any garden.