17 Showy Shrubs That Shine in the Winter Landscape

With flowers, fragrance, berries, and cones, the winter landscape becomes anything but dull by incorporating showy shrubs brimming with interesting seasonal attributes. Colorful evergreens, multicolored foliage, and architectural branching bring variation and contrast against a gray backdrop.

Shrubs structure the garden by anchoring foundations, borders, and mixed hedges and serving as focal points. With dynamic, all-season specimens, the winter garden takes on new life even as it rests. Pollinators, birds, and wildlife appreciate the shelter and forage the cold-season bearers provide, too.

Daphne ‘Aureomarginata’

	botanical name Daphne odora ‘Aureomarginata’
	sun requirements Partial shade
	height 3-4’
	hardiness zones 7-9

Daphne odora is one of the most intensely sweet perfumed garden selections. Even more outstanding is that it flowers in winter, when we appreciate its fragrance in the cool air. ‘Aureomarginata’ has another striking feature in its long, mint green leaves with creamy yellow edges. The tailored variegation lends a splash of brightness while maintaining its refined aesthetic.

The fragrant, deep purple-pink blossoms emerge in late winter. ‘Aureomarginata’ is a bit more hardy than the species, withstanding temperatures to about 10°F (-12°C). Where not hardy, they overwinter in containers in sheltered areas protected from winds and frigid conditions.

Other brightly variegated D. odora cultivars include the deliciously named ‘Moonlight Parfait’ and ‘Banana Split.’ Leaves have wide ribbons of creamy yellow margins contrasting the deep green and purple-pink bloom clusters.

Camellia ‘Yuletide’

	botanical name Camellia sasanqua ‘Yuletide’
	sun requirements Partial to full shade
	height 8-10’
	hardiness zones 7-10

Camellias are handsome evergreens with deep green, glossy leaves on long stems. The fine blooms, from full and broad to dainty and detailed, exude charm. ‘Yuletide’ blooms throughout the holiday season, when bright red flowers contrast the dark leaves.  

‘Yuletide’ lends a stately look to the landscape year-round, and the striking winter blooms delight when little else is in flower. The flowers perform a pollinator service in the quiet season, attracting bees and other insects with their valuable pollen and nectar.

Camellias are signatures of the American South, with C. sasanqua flowering before late winter’s C. japonica. The low-maintenance shrubs bear single, double, and ruffled petals in shades from white and blush to crimson and purple.

Edgeworthia ‘Snow Cream’

	botanical name Edgeworthia chrysantha ‘Snow Cream’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 5-8’
	hardiness zones 7-10

Edgeworthia, or paperbush, drops its broad leaves in the fall to reveal an attractive branching structure and rich bark (once used in papermaking). In late summer, silvery white buds develop in umbels on the tips of stems. Each umbel holds up to 40 petite, tubular, fragrant, ivory-yellow blooms.

As temperatures drop, buds continue to develop, bursting into flower by February. ‘Snow Cream’ lends a tropical flare with an umbrella shape, large leaves, and bigger pendant blooms. It’s faster growing and more cold-hardy than the species. Tony Avent of Plant Delights Nursery introduced ‘Snow Cream’ after finding it in a plant shipment from China.

Edgeworthia performs best in organically rich soils with good drainage. They benefit from protection from the intense afternoon sun.

Loropetalum ‘Red Diamond™’

	botanical name Loropetalum chinense ‘Shang Red’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 6’
	hardiness zones 7-10

A member of the witchhazel family, loropetalum (also called Chinese fringe flower) features clusters of strappy blooms in magenta, red, or white in the spring. ‘Red Diamond™’ is the reddest of the group, with crimson fringey flowers.

Burgundy leaves on dark stems bring rich contrast all year. A midsize, dense grower, ‘Red Diamond™’ is versatile, and its deep red shades stand out among greens to punctuate the display. Bold and stately, it brings visual heft to the blended landscape, adding depth and layers.

Loropetalum is low maintenance and easy care. It takes shaping well, though seldom needs it.

Pieris ‘Mountain Fire’

	botanical name Pieris japonica ‘Mountain Fire’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 4-10’
	hardiness zones 5-8

Pieris has pendulous white flowers that droop gracefully from whorled, leafy stems. The flower buds develop in late summer and persist as suspended beads through winter. Late in the season and early spring, the delicate bell blossoms open, resembling lily-of-the-valley.

In addition to the winter buds and blooms is striking fresh growth. New leaves and stems emerge bronze and red and mature to deep, glossy green. The narrow, pointed leaves appear in bushy rosettes along the stems.

‘Mountain Fire’ is a tall favorite with bright red new growth. Upright stems tipped in red offer an all-over glow. The crimson leaves, combined with the cooling white blossoms, are a spectacle in spring.

Distylium ‘Cinnamon Girl^®’

	botanical name Distylium ‘PIIDIST-V’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 2-4’
	hardiness zones 6-9

Distylium is becoming more well-known as a versatile evergreen for foundation and border arrangements. Depending on the selection, the attractive evergreens have graceful scaffolding or upright branches and narrow, lustrous leaves in deep olive to blue-green. New growth emerges in copper, red, or purple.

‘Cinnamon Girl^®’ is low-growing with fresh growth in purple-red on swirling branches. It’s among the more cold-tolerant cultivars, with hardiness to zone 6 (most are hardy to zone 7).

‘Vintage Jade’ is one of the best-known and most compact varieties with a mounding habit. It has dark green, shiny leaves. Tiny red blossoms line stems in February and March. ‘Coppertone’ adds spice with coppery red new growth. Leaves mature to blue-green with purple tones in winter.

The architectural shrubs are carefree and do well in coastal and high-heat conditions. They seldom need pruning and perform reliably with few requirements.

Abelia ‘Kaleidoscope’

	botanical name Abelia x grandiflora ‘Kaleidoscope’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 2-4’
	hardiness zones 6-9

‘Kaleidoscope’ makes the list for its color-changing foliage to span the seasons. The dwarf Abelia transitions from green and golden yellow in spring to red-orange in fall.

Abelia has glossy, pointed leaves that line woody stems. ‘Kaleidoscope’ bears tubular white flower clusters from summer until frost. Pollinators, including hummingbirds, flock to their nectar centers.

‘Suntastic Pink’ and ‘Confetti’ are other rich foliage offerings in bold sprays of green and ivory with cerise-pink margins. ‘Miss Lemon’ is bright with creamy yellow leaves with green centers. Light pink flowers bloom in profusion and are long-lasting.

In cold climates, Abelia may drop some leaves in winter as semi-evergreen. The durable woody grower is disease, pest, and deer-resistant. They withstand heat, humidity, and periods of drought.

Osmanthus ‘Goshiki’

	botanical name Osmanthus heterophyllus ‘Goshiki’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 5-10’
	hardiness zones 6-9

‘Goshiki’ is notable for its holly-shaped leaves in splashy multicolors and dense form. New growth emerges pinkish-bronze and turns green with ivory with gold splashes. Tiny blossoms in late summer and fall are highly fragrant.

‘Goshiki’ brings a twist on traditional evergreen features and is a Royal Horticultural Society Award of Garden Merit recipient. Slow growing, it reaches five feet in ten years.

Look for ‘Variegatus,’ also with Award of Garden Merit status, for elegant appeal with dark green foliage edged in creamy white.

Winter Jasmine

	botanical name Jasminum nudiflorum
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 4-15’
	hardiness zones 6-10

Winter jasmine produces a fountain of bright yellow blooms starting in January and February. It’s one of the first to show color after the depths of the cold season. Tubular blooms line bare, willowy branches before leaves appear.

Prune winter jasmine as an arching shrub or allow it to sprawl as a vine. Let it trail over a stone wall or train it up a pergola or archway. It also makes a lovely slope cover, free to ramble. ‘Aureum’ has unique cream and gold variegated leaves that complement the yellow flowers.

Winter jasmine does best in moist, rich conditions but tolerates poor soils and periods of drought and heat. Rejuvenation pruning benefits the look; cut it back in spring after flowering for a fresh flush of growth and tidier habit.

Dwarf Threadleaf Cypress ‘Filifera Nana’

	botanical name Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Filifera Nana’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 2-5’
	hardiness zones 5-8

Dwarf false-cypress, with thread-like, feathery foliage, has a loose, unstructured, openly pyramidal habit. Their unique texture, mounding forms, and blue, chartreuse, or brassy colorations provide high contrast in the winter landscape.

For a frosty look, ‘Filifera Nana’ is dense with fan leaves in blue-green with whiter undersides. ‘White Pygmy’ takes it further with tips of white on fine threads.

Several other hybrids shine in a burst of gold. ‘Sungold’ is dwarf and mounding with gold-tipped threads. ‘Vintage Gold’ has burnished orangey-gold tones. ‘Golden Mop’ is low-growing with feathery foliage in bright gold and green.

Holly ‘Christmas Jewel®’

	botanical name Ilex x ‘HL 10-90’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 6-10′
	hardiness zones 6-9

We love hollies in the winter for their lustrous, shapely leaves and bright red berries. In addition to cheering the display with festive, berry-filled arrangements, they also provide food for birds and other wildlife.

‘Christmas Jewel’ is a naturally pyramidal variety with a dense, compact habit. It doesn’t need cross-pollination to fruit and produces large red berries in winter, making it a true hallmark of the season.

The conical form seldom needs pruning to retain its shape. Like most hollies, ‘Christmas Jewel’ tolerates various soils as long as they’re well-draining.

Harry Lauder’s Walking Stick

	botanical name Corylus avellana ‘Contorta’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 8-10’
	hardiness zones 4-8

Harry Lauder’s walking stick is notable for its twisted and curled form. When leaves drop in the fall, the stems bring unique visual interest. To top it off, pendulous yellow catkins suspend from the gnarled branches in late winter.

Harry Lauder has curled, hairy leaves and gray bark. The straight species spreads through suckers and can be invasive, though ‘Contorta’ doesn’t experience the same aggressive spread. Other cultivars grow commercially for nut production – the filbert or hazelnut. The sport ‘Contorta’ seldom produces fruit.

Harry Lauder prefers rich, moist, well-drained soils, though it’s drought-tolerant once established. Grow this Royal Horticultural Society Award of Garden Merit recipient in a bed or container where its silhouette is highly visible.

Witch Hazel ‘Jelena’

	botanical name Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Jelena’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 8-12’
	hardiness zones 4-9

There are so many witch hazels to bring fragrance, color, interesting bark, attractive form, and golden fall color to the all-season garden. With species that bloom in spring, fall, and winter, there’s an opportunity to enjoy the strappy, fringed blooms across seasons.

For a strong winter bloom, look for H. x intermedia, a hybrid between H. mollis (Chinese witch hazel) and H. japonica (Japanese witch hazel). Numerous cultivars bring diverse flower colors on robust forms. ‘Jelena’ shows copper-fringed petals on bare stems in March. Its fall foliage glows in oranges and reds, with fresh green leaves in spring and summer.

For native species, there’s Hamamelis virginiana, blooming in October and November and sometimes into winter. H. vernalis is another U.S. native, smaller in stature but highly fragrant with late winter and spring flowers, sometimes starting in January. H. vernalis is hardy in zones 4-8. 

Witch hazels make excellent back-of-the-border plantings for a fountain of blooms. Mostly upright with an open canopy, multistems are ornamental in the dormant landscape. They require well-draining, non-clay soils to thrive.

Red Twig Dogwood

	botanical name Cornus sericea
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 6-10’
	hardiness zones 3-8

Red twig dogwoods offer unique adaptations with upright stems that turn from burgundy to bright red in cold weather. Striking in the winter landscape, the red twig dogwood is a suckering shrub native to much of North America. Cultivars in yellow and coral with green, gold, or variegated foliage add to the interest.

Red twigs produce small white flowers that yield white, blue, or purple berries that provide forage for birds and wildlife. The twiggy branches form thickets and do well in moist areas. In a sweep or stand, they stand out amongst a snowy backdrop. They’re beautiful in naturalized compositions. 

Grow red twig dogwoods in containers for seasonal accents or clip their stems for use in floral arrangements and decor. They’ll regrow the following season.

Inkberry Holly ‘Squeezebox®’

	botanical name Ilex glabra ‘Squeezebox®’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 4-6’
	hardiness zones 5-9

Inkberry hollies are North American natives with small, lustrous leaves on twiggy, woody stems. Indigo-black fruits set in the fall and persist into winter. For prolific berries, the female plants need a male counterpart for pollination. 

‘Squeezebox®’ is taller and more upright than other cultivars, with formality as a structural pyramidal evergreen. ‘Squeezebox®’ is male and useful in cross-pollinating females like ‘Gembox’ and ‘Strongbox.’

‘Gembox’ is a jewel with dense, fine leaves and red tips in the spring. The petite growers are two to three feet tall and wide. ‘Strongbox’ has slightly larger leaves but the same robust growth and rounded habit as ‘Gembox.’ Both retain their form without pruning. 

The minute flowers and pea-sized fruits are a valuable food source for pollinators and wildlife. The native species is host to butterflies and specialized bees. 

Snowberry ‘Pink Symphony™’

	botanical name Symphoricarpos ‘Kolmamogo’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 4’
	hardiness zones 3-7

Snowberry is a rugged North American native with clusters of tiny pink bell flowers in late summer. Post-bloom, berry clusters in pale green emerge and ripen to white. 

In the wild, snowberry provides important shelter and browse for wildlife, though birds leave most of the berries alone. This leads to a winter show with lots of berries on the bush for a display after the leaves drop.

‘Pink Symphony™’ produces berry-filled stems with a pretty twist: the berries are bright pink. Showy in the landscape and floral arrangements, ‘Pink Symphony™’ is a rich addition to the woodland border or against a backdrop of evergreens.

Snowberry grows across soil conditions and is endemic to dry, rocky sites. Grow it as a border specimen, along a slope, for erosion control, or in a naturalized arrangement. It spreads through rhizomes to form thickets if allowed.

Winterberry ‘Berry Heavy®’

	botanical name Ilex verticillata ‘Berry Heavy®’
	sun requirements Partial to full shade
	height 6-8’
	hardiness zones 3-9

Winterberry is a standout among the frosty, muted hues of the cold season. In the holly family, winterberry is a deciduous species native to North America.