shrub -
A woody plant that is smaller than a tree, usually having several stems rather than a single trunk; a bush.
Pick Your Shrubs
Apache Plume: No Albuquerque xeriscape should be without one. Single petal white blooms in spring. Following the bloom it produces interesting curly plumes. Semi-evergreen with a max height of 8’ in the wild but easily kept at 4’ with shearing once a year in fall. Very drought tolerant. Mac Audio
Baccharis “starn”: A true lover of the desert this plant thrives in sandy soils. Develops a very interesting weeping habit as a tall ground cover. Average 3’tall x 4’ wide and evergreen. Mac Audio
Blue Mist: Great shrub to 5’ tall but loses its leaves in winter. Bright blue flowers in early summer. A good substitute for Russian Sage because it does not spread from runners. Mac Audio
Crimson Pigmy Barberry: Beautiful dwarf shrub with crimson leaves and no real blooms. Small thorns but does not need to be trimmed. Looses its leaves in winter. Forms a nice neat mound. Mac Audio
Dwarf Buford Holly: A low maintenace classic, Dwarf Buford Holly is a shrub with glossy leaves with creamy white flowers in spring.
Dwarf Indian Hawthorne: Evergreen low mounding shrub that is covered in pink or white flowers in spring. Average 3’x3’ for the dwarf varieties. Mac Audio
Eleagnus: Fast growing evergreen shrub. Crème colored blooms in fall. Great screen or filler plant for large corners. Does well in windy conditions. Foliage is a medium green with silvery undersides. Mac Audio
Fern Bush: This semi evergreen native has the most unusual leaves of any plant we offer. They look like little ferns. Average size 4′x4′ with White blooms in the late spring. A “must have” for any xeriscape. Drought tolerant in full sun. Mac Audio
Forsythia: What can I say? This display only last a few weeks in early spring but it’s a great plant for a large landscape. Avg 10’x10′ Mac Audio
Gilt-Edge Eleagnus: Colorful foliage year round Small crème blooms in fall and fast growing. Use as a screen the average size 8’x8’. Mac Audio
Gold Dust Acuba: On of the few "tropical looking" shrubs that do well in our area. The 6" long evergreen leaves look like they have been splattered with gold paint. The plant is maintained with occasional pruning at 5'.
Grey Cotoneaster: Grey foliage with small white blooms in summer. Very easy to grow. Can be trimmed into a formal hedge (yuck) or pruned once a year or less for an informal look. Evergreen 4’-5’ if trimmed occasionally. Very large blooms-guess what color? (also in white) Mac Audio
Gulfstream Nandina: Many varieties exist from 1’x1’ to 5’x2’. It is a much loved and much hated plant depending on the variety planted and the pruning. One of the very few plants that stays narrow in relation to it’s height so it is great for those narrow areas where you want a plant 3’ or more.. Does well in shade or sun. Red foliage and berries in the winter with small white blooms in the spring. Mac Audio
Hardy Dwarf Broom: “Genista Lydia” The reason I give the botanical name is to point out that this is not the aggressive weed of the west coast. Evergreen 18” tall x 3’ wide. Drought tolerant and a good addition to your xeriscape. Covered in yellow blooms in April. Full sun. Mac Audio
Lena Broom: Part of the huge family for brooms that is known for its green twiggy stems and startling spring blooms. This variety gets about 5′ tall and 6′ wide. It is evergreen and very drought tolerant. Pick a color and a size and we will try to include it on your wish list.
Mac Audio
Lilac: Large shrub for large properties. Makes a good screen but it loses its leaves in winter.
Mac Audio
Mahonia: Evergreen shrub for the shade areas. Yellow blooms in the spring with a holly like leaf. Slowly grows to 5’ tall and 3’ wide.
Mac Audio
Mountain Mahogany: This photo was taken in the Ojito wilderness. This slow growing variety can attain 10′ but it can easily be maintained at half that height–leafless in winter it is a good addition to any native landscape.
Mac Audio
Mugo Pine: Think pine bush. Evergreen without blooms. Average 5’x5’ with a lot of variation in size. Very tolerant of wind and cold. Mac Audio
Parney Cotoneaster: Semi-Evergreen shrub averages 4’-5’ tall and as wide. Plum colored leaves in fall. Some people trim them into “balls” or “boxes” —No No No! Trim them no more than once a year after the white spring blooms for a nice natural look. Easy to grow. Mac Audio
Photinia: Fast growing hedge with bright red new growth in the spring. In Albuquerque it can get to 8’ tall and 6’ wide or more. If you want to keep it smaller you must like to trim. If trimmed it should be considered “formal”. It blooms white if it is not trimmed and it won’t bloom at all if you trim it in early spring.
Mac Audio
Pink Abelia: Semi-evergreen shrub with a more traditional look. Trumpet shaped small flowers from summer till fall. Bronze fall color with a max height 4’-5’. Cold hardy and good in sun or part shade.
Mac Audio
Potentilla: Semi evergreen shrub of the mountains. Most bloom yellow in summer. It likes cool weather so plant on the north side or in light shade. Average 2’ x 2’.
Mac Audio
Roses: Thousands of varieties. They do very well is our low humidity with minimal insects or disease problems. Pruning is not as tough as you may think and the truth is that you can just whack’em and you will still get good results. Please don’t tell the “rose people” I said that. They also do well in part shade at this elevation.
Mac Audio
Spanish Broom: New Mexico classic Yellow blooms in spring. Can get 15’ over a life time so give it room. Great fragrance when blooming. Plant one in the far corner of the yard for interest. Evergreen.
Texas Sage: Native plant from my home state. Averages 4’ tall and 3’wide. Semi evergreen and should not be planted on the north side of the house. Needs sun and warmth. Grey foliage with beautiful lavender blooms in summer.
Turpentine Bush: A better photo of this native is coming. Trust me–It’s a very nice neat evergreen plant that once established needs very little water. It forms a mounding habit 3′x3′ average. The small but bright yellow blooms cover the plant in fall and the bright green new foliage is very pretty in the spring.
Upright Rosemary: Evergreen with sky blue flower in late winter to spring. Nice rounded shape with minimal trimming. Foliage can be used in cooking or for potpourri. Drought tolerant in full to part sun. Average mature since 4’ tall x 6’ wide. Can be kept 3’x4’ with yearly trimming.
