Flowering shrubs

Shrubs flowering in Late Spring

	Delicate flowers and foliage of Daphne 'Carol Mackie' with white-edged leaves, and 'Somerset' with plain green foliage (here appearing dark bluish-green, but usually it's just green). Both are small shrubs with intensely fragrant flowers. They take sun or shade, but they are tricky with the soil: they demand excellent drainage, such as in gravelly, sandy or rocky soil. Standing water kills them, as does one hour of direct hot summer sun on the pot before planting, so keep the pot cool!
Daphne Spirea (not a well-chosen name!) or Spirea japonica alpina is one of the smallest garden spireas. It is much more compact than the similar looking 'Little Princess', which in my plantings reached a width of 5 to 6 ft., - outgrowing everything around it - and which I call "Little Monster" for that reason. Daphne Spirea, however, is a much tamer creature.
	Fritsch Spirea is a very useful shrub to accompany roses, lilacs and a variety of other plants. I like it's medium-sized leaf of good textural quality, which helps to balance poor quality foliage of other plants. The foliage color is a medium grass green, but depending on the light it often has a wonderful bluish-green cast to it. The large flower clusters are a good pure white, and the fall foliage is outstanding and gives this little shrub prime stage!

	Bridal Wreath Spirea (Spirea x vanhouttei) is an old-fashioned shrub of the old farm houses, and in my opinion it should be used with caution. The foliage is often diseased, and after bloom there is really not much to admire on this plant. Best used in company of purple foliage shrubs in a screen planting. To the right: Sweetspire 'Henry's Garnet', an arching shrub with drooping flower spikes, sweetly scented, and with an outstanding reddish-purple fall color. The arching habit can be used to great advantage in gardens where an informal element is needed, for example among heavy, round Rhododenrons.

	Doublefile Viburnum (Vib. plicatum tomentosum 'Mariesii') is a great multi-season shrub, loved by gardeners and birds alike. The flowers sometimes look like snow, berries change from red to black in the summer and are snacked by birds, and fall is enriched with purple foliage. But be aware, the little shrub in it's 5-gallon-container will grow 15 ft. wide and tall! Use some of the compact varieties if your garden space is limited. 'Shasta' grows 12' wide, but no taller than 6 to 7 ft. 'Summer Snowflake' and 'Watanabei' are even more compact and have an extended bloom season.
	fruit is developing on a Doublefile Viburnum - the birds will be happy Flowers of Linden Viburnum 'Erie' are not as exciting, but the fruit and fall color displays on this species are very impressive.

	For fragrance in late spring or early summer, use Mockorange (Philadelphus). However, choose with care because not all varieties are fragrant! Natchez (left) and Buckley's Quill (right) are both very strongly scented. They are easy to grow, robust and long-lived, but because bloom is fairly short I would use them in a screen or hedge planting rather than giving them center stage. One of my favorites is 'Miniature Snowflake' (not to be confused with 'Minnesota Snowflake'!). It is a dwarf, loaded with bloom, and very intensely fragrant.

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