Bushes create a long-term landscape addition, so choosing the right variety is an important decision. Look at the shrub’s required growing condition, size and appearance. Bushes that turn red in the fall give the landscape more drama than a monotone green.
Large shrubs do well as background plants where the red fall colors can set off smaller shrubs. “Muskogee” crape myrtle (Lagerstroemia indica x fauriei “Muskogee”) produces light lavender-pink flowers in the summer on branches reaching 15 to 20 feet tall. The glossy green leaves turn red in autumn before they fall to the ground, revealing peeling cinnamon-colored bark. Another crape myrtle that turns red is the “Red Rocket” (Lagerstroemia indica “Whit IV”). A 12-foot-tall shrub is the “Velvet Cloak” smoke bush (Cotinus coggygria “Velvet Cloak”) with large sprays of pink flowers and deep purple leaves throughout the summer until they turn red in the fall.
Medium bushes are still tall enough to act as background or hedge plants that create an area of fall color. Peking cotoneaster (Cotoneaster acutifolius) grows sprawling branches covered with dark-green leaves that turn red in the fall. This 8- to 10-foot-tall bush produces tiny white and pink flowers, which turn into red berries by fall. “Little Emperor” dwarf Japanese blueberry (Elaeocarpus decipiens “MonProud”) is another deciduous 8- to 10-foot-tall shrub. Bronze-colored new growth turns bright red before falling in the autumn. The white summer flowers turn into blue-black olive-shaped berries.
Small shrubs fit in the landscape around larger shrubs, fences and building foundations. The red fall color breaks up the color scheme when spring and summer flowers are finished. Doublefile viburnum (Viburnum plicatum f. tomentosum “Newzam”) stays compact at 4 to 5 feet tall with snowball-like flower clusters. The flowers are sterile, so no berries are produced in the fall. The leaves turn a burgundy red during the fall. Heavenly bamboo (Nandina domestica) is not a true bamboo, but a member of the barberry family. This evergreen reaches 5 to 8 feet tall with lacy leaves. The “Gulf Stream” variety reaches 4 feet tall, while “Moon Bay” grows to 3 feet.
Tiny shrubs are used as ground covers and in areas between larger bushes. The red fall color creates some unusual cold weather visuals in the garden. “Wood’s Compacta” Kinnikinnick (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi “Wood’s Compacta”) produces ground-hugging evergreen branches spreading 3 to 4 feet long with a height of only 2 to 3 inches. The pink-tinted white flowers turn into bright red ornamental berries. The red fall color lasts throughout the winter. Wintergreen (Gaultheria procumbens) grows urn-shaped pinkish-white flowers that turn into scarlet berries. The creeping 6-inch-tall stems are covered with oval dark green leaves that smell when disturbed. The cooler fall temperatures turn the leaves red, which last all winter long.
Your Planting Articles
- Monrovia: Wood’s Compact Kinnikinnick
- Monrovia: Muskogee Crape Myrtle
- Ed Hume Seeds: Nandina
- Learn2Grow: Viburnum Plicatum F. Tomentosum
- Learn2Grow: Cotoneaster Acutifolius
- Sunset: Gaultheria Procumbens
- Monrovia: Monrovia Introduces Exciting New and Exclusive Varieties for 2005
- University of California Davis Arboretum: Plant Sale Inventory August 2011
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