White Flowering Shrubs: 31 White Flower Bushes For Your Garden

So you’ve already added some white flowers to your raised garden bed. But once you’ve realized how subtle they can be, you start to realize that you need some white flowering shrubs around the exterior of your garden space, or lining the path of the walkway into your home. But where do you start? Which white flower bushes are the right choice?

The good news is that there are many different white flowering shrubs, that grow across a variety of different hardiness zones. Finding the perfect match for your your gardening needs will come down to looks, and likely where you live. Do you go with the classic hydrangeas? Perhaps some beautiful azaleas?

If your green thumb is new or if you are an experienced horticulturalist looking for a challenge, you have plenty of different choices to choose from. The contrast of elegant white flower bushes next to deep green leaves can be refreshing. Regardless of where you plan to grow them, here’s some of our favorite flowering shrubs with white blooms for your home or garden space!

Azaleas

Scientific Name: Rhododendron Spp.

• Plant Type: Evergreen or deciduous shrub
• Geographic Origin: China and Japan
• Plant Size: 1-85 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sun
• Plant Zone: 3-9, depending on the variety

There’s so much to be said about azaleas! Whether you live in a warm or cooler climate, you can probably find an azalea for your garden. There are hundreds of types of azaleas, including both evergreen and deciduous varieties. They tend to have funnel- or tube-shaped flower heads that come in many single- or double-layer combinations.

Choose from several breathtaking solid-white Azaleas, like “Weston’s Innocence” or Alabama Azaleas. Depending on the type of Azalea, they bloom from late winter, all summer, or even into fall. These perennial shrubs have delicate roots that prefer loose sandy soil that’s moist and well-drained.

Button Bush

Scientific Name: Cephalanthus occidentalis

• Plant Type: Deciduous shrub
• Geographic Origin: North and Central America, Cuba
• Plant Size: 5-12 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sun
• Plant Zone: 5-11

If you’re looking for white flowering shrubs that will work as a loose, casual hedge, check out Buttonbush. Also called Honey Balls, it has spherical clusters of tiny white tubular flowers with long stamens that make the clusters look fuzzy! The flowers have a sweet fragrance that attracts all kinds of pollinators! The white misty-looking balls are offset by long glossy green leaves.

You’ll have blooms all summer into fall when the leaves turn reddish-brown into winter. This shrub loves wet, loamy soil – the wetter the better. It’s even known to grow in a few feet of standing water! Plant it as a hedge along a pond, river, or areas of your property with poor drainage.

Chokeberry

Scientific Name: Aronia arbutifolia

• Plant Type: Semi-deciduous shrub
• Geographic Origin: Eastern United States, Eastern Europe, and Russia
• Plant Size: 5-10 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sun
• Plant Zone: 4-9

Chokeberry offers interest to your yard all year round! From spring through summer, enjoy clusters of fragrant white 5-petal flowers. Next, groups of glossy red berries show late summer through winter! But don’t worry: these white flowering shrubs are safe for pets and children. The berries are edible, and Chokeberry gets its name from the sour taste of the fruit!

Its green leaves turn bright red in the fall. Chokeberry isn’t picky about soil but thrives in moist and loamy soil. It attracts all kinds of pollinators in the spring and summer. Migrating birds eat the berries in the fall and winter.

Common Myrtle

Scientific Name: Myrtus communis

• Plant Type: Evergreen shrub or small tree
• Geographic Origin: North Africa and the Mediterranean
• Plant Size: 3-12 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Plant Zone: 8-11

You’ll find several white flowering bushes that are evergreen in tropical zones. This includes the Common Myrtle, a popular choice for its beautiful spring and summer blooms. Enjoy the fancy little white blooms among glossy dark green leaves. They eventually give way to clusters of deep purple berries.

Keep soil loamy, moist, and well-drained. Don’t overwater or let the soil get too acidic, or Common Myrtle can get sick. You can get creative with pruning this shrub: It naturally grows loose and tall like a tree but accepts shaping well.

Crape Myrtle ‘Natchez’

Scientific Name: Lagerstroemia x Natchez

• Plant Type: Deciduous shrub or tree
• Geographic Origin: Southern Asia
• Plant Size: 4-20 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Plant Zone: 7-10

Common Crape Myrtles are shrubs with flowers only found in shades of pink. However, hybrids like Natchez have beautiful showy white blooms. There are a few white hybrids besides Nachez, like Early Bird White and Delta Moon.

Each hybrid variety has specific features, but all of them present decadent clusters of papery flowers and leaves that change colors in the fall. They also all have colorful tree bark that peels like birch bark.

You’ll especially love Natchez Crape Myrtle for its large flowers that bloom later in the summer. Give this shrub full sun and well-drained, loamy soil, and it will be happy. Pile on the mulch, but skip fertilizer.

Daphne

Scientific Name: Daphne spp.

• Plant Type: Evergreen or deciduous shrub
• Geographic Origin: Europe, Asia, and Africa
• Plant Size: 1-5 feet tall, depending on the variety
• Sun Exposure: Full sun to partial shade
• Plant Zone: 4-10

Evergreen in warmer climates, Daphne puts on a show all year. From spring through summer, you can enjoy rounded clusters of small, white 4-petal flowers surrounded by elongated glossy leaves. They give way to bunches of shiny red berries. In cooler climates, most varieties will lose their leaves by the first frost.

While Daphne takes several years to fully mature, it blooms pretty fast in the spring once it’s established. They don’t transplant well but are pretty low-maintenance to grow. Try planting them in a large planter with loamy, well-drained soil.

Deutzia

Scientific Name: Deutzia spp.

• Plant Type: Evergreen or deciduous shrubs, depending on the species
• Geographic Origin: Europe, Asia, and Central America
• Plant Size:1-13 feet
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sun
• Plant Zone: 5-8

Deutzia is an old garden favorite that’s starting to become popular again. Deutzia bushes have weeping branches with cascading groups of petite white or pink flowers. The flowers tend to be bell-shaped or open. It has bright green leaves that turn orange in the fall.

You’ll find a wide variety in Deutzia with over 50 species, ranging from ground cover to large mounding shrubs. There are both evergreen and deciduous varieties. Deutzia isn’t picky about soil, as long as it’s moist and well-draining. Prune the shrub once a year after the flowers fade.

Elderberry

Scientific Name: Sambucus canadensis

• Plant Type: Deciduous shrub
• Geographic Origin: North America
• Plant Size: 5-12 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full sun to partial shade
• Plant Zone: 1-9

Elderberry has become very popular in recent years for its edible and medicinal fruit. It has small white lemon-scented flowers that grow in large flat sprays. They grow wide, bright green leaves all summer long before giving way in the fall. Then, it’s time for the shrub’s dark purple berries to bring texture and beauty to this plant!

Among white flowering shrubs, Elderberry has an impressive zone range. You can grow it as far north as the Queen Elizabeth Islands in northern Canada! The shrub is pretty easy to grow, and it’s not picky about soil as long as it’s well-drained. Just make sure to water it regularly.

Hydrangea

Scientific Name: Hydrangea spp.

• Plant Type: Deciduous shrub
• Geographic Origin: The Americas, Asia
• Plant Size: 1-15ft, depending on the species
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sun
• Plant Zone: 5-9

Hydrangeas are versatile white flowering shrubs. You’ll love their petite flowers in large ornamental clusters among wide, flat green leaves. Some varieties produce blooms in shades of blue, purple, pink, white, and even green. Some species can have their color manipulated by changing the pH level of the soil. Most hydrangeas grow quickly, and with minimal maintenance outside of regular pruning.

There are several species of Hydrangeas. The most common is Hydrangea macrophylla – called bigleaf or mophead for the large size of its flower clusters and foliage. This shrub is pretty easygoing, adapting well to all kinds of conditions. Just make sure to fertilize them at the start of spring, and water them regularly.

Japanese Camellia

Scientific Name: Camellia japonica

• Plant Type: Evergreen shrub
• Geographic Origin: Asia
• Plant Size: 3-20 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Partial sun or shade
• Plant Zone: 6-10

For the fans of symmetry, this one’s for you! There are 250 species of the Camellia genus, but the showy Japanese Camellia is the most popular. The flowers look almost like peonies or roses. While it blooms fall through spring, the glossy, dark green leaves are evergreen. You can find several varieties in pure white, with blooms ranging from 2 to 5 inches wide.

Camellia shrubs are sensitive to the sun, preferring the shade. They take some time to establish themselves. Once they do, they grow slowly. Plant them in the spring or fall, when the weather is mild. They prefer moist and slightly acidic soil.

Japanese Pieris

Scientific Name: Pieris japonica

• Plant Type: Evergreen shrub
• Geographic Origin: Asia
• Plant Size: 5-8 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sun
• Plant Zone: 5-8

A unique addition to my list of white flowering bushes, consider the Japanese Pieris. In late winter, dainty teardrop-shaped flowers make an appearance. Add it to your landscape for color and fill. This evergreen bush also has glossy green leaves that turn bronze for the fall and winter!

Go with Japanese Peiris if your area has mild weather conditions. Just be aware that it has a very strong fragrance that people either love or strongly dislike! Give it acidic, nutrient-rich, well-drained soil and deadhead flowers regularly for a healthy-looking plant.

Laurel Cherry

Scientific Name: Prunus laurocerasus

• Plant Type: Evergreen shrub
• Geographic Origin: Southeast Europe, Southwest Asia
• Plant Size: 15-30 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full sun to full shade
• Plant Zone: 4-10

Laurel Cherry offers an elegant display throughout all 4 seasons. All year round, this large shrub features large, deep green leaves. By midsummer, it explodes with flower stalks, or racemes, of tiny plum-scented flowers. Then, in the fall and winter, clusters of deep red cherry-like fruit slowly turn to a striking black color.

Laurel Cherry is a good choice for coastal regions as it tolerates salt-spray well. It also grows fast and adapts to all kinds of growing conditions. While there are dwarf species out there, traditional Laurel Cherry makes a great security hedge. Prune it into shape if you prefer less of a tree look.

Lilac

Scientific Name: Syringa vulgaris

• Plant Type: Deciduous shrub
• Geographic Origin: Europe
• Plant Size: 8-15 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Plant Zone: 1-8

One of the classic white flowering shrubs, it’s commonly seen in purple. When the white variety blooms in the spring, you’ll love the effect! Lilac is known for its small, 4-petal fragrant flowers. They grow at the end of stems in cone-shaped clusters. The heart-shaped leaves are bluish-green and don’t change colors in the fall.

This low-maintenance plant just needs pruning and fertilization in the spring. It does best in mild summers and winters. Water it sparingly, and give it neutral, loamy soil that’s more on the sandy side.

Magnolia

Scientific Name: Magnolia spp.

• Plant Type: Evergreen or deciduous shrub or small tree
• Geographic Origin: Asia
• Plant Size: 5-12 feet tall for shrub types
• Sun Exposure: Full sun to partial shade
• Plant Zone: 4-12, depending on the type

Traditionally loved for its fragrant blooms, you can find a variety of Magnolia where you live. There are both evergreen and deciduous types that work in all kinds of climates. You’ll find both flowering tree and shrub types with blooms in a variety of styles. Popular white versions include Star Magnolia and the stunning Yulan Magnolia.

Magnolias are white-flowering shrubs that adapt well to all kinds of conditions. Just water them consistently, keeping the soil drained and on the acidic side. They thrive when pruned regularly.

Mountain Laurel

Scientific Name: Kalmia latifolia

• Plant Type: Evergreen shrub
• Geographic Origin: Eastern North America
• Plant Size: 5-15 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Partial sun
• Plant Zone: 4-9

While Mountain Laurel tends to demand careful maintenance, the work pays off. It explodes with clusters of bowl-shaped blooms in late spring through the summer. Flowers are white or pink and fade into a deep pink center. The glossy elongated leaves grow from knobby branches.

This slow-growing bush is best for the experienced gardener. Mountain Laurel is picky about soil, preferring it to be cool, moist, and acidic. It also needs just the right amount of shade. Make sure to plant it with the crown exposed above the soil. Deadhead flowers regularly to keep unseemly brown fruits from appearing.

Mock Orange

Scientific Name: Philadelphus coronarius

• Plant Type: Deciduous shrub
• Geographic Origin: Europe
• Plant Size: 4-10 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sun
• Plant Zone: 4-9

If you’re looking for white flowering shrubs that attract spring pollinators, go with Mock Orange. Named for its similar appearance to orange blossoms, it also puts off a strong orange fragrance. Throughout springtime, you can enjoy arching branches covered in beautiful clusters of 4-petal flowers and veiny elliptical leaves.

By summer, the flowers are gone. However, Mock Orange is a fast-growing, dense shrub that is great for a privacy hedge. It’s easy to grow. Just give it nutrient-rich soil and water sparingly. Fertilize at the beginning of the growing season and prune after the last blooms die off.

New Jersey Tea

Scientific Name: Ceanothus americanus

• Plant Type: Deciduous shrub
• Geographic Origin: North America
• Plant Size: 3-4 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sun
• Plant Zone: 4-8

This New England native played its role in history! It gets its name from the Revolutionary War era. Patriots used its broad green leaves to make tea during tea tariff boycotts. New Jersey Tea is lovely, growing upwards with clusters of small, fragrant flowers at the end of long reddish-brown stems.

Butterflies and hummingbirds love this low-lying shrub. It adapts to all kinds of conditions. Just make sure to water it regularly. It tolerates both heat and freezing temperatures but will go dormant.

Ninebark

Scientific Name: Physocarpus opulifolius

• Plant Type: Deciduous shrub
• Geographic Origin: North America
• Plant Size: 5-8 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sun
• Plant Zone: 1-10

Another New Egland native on my list of white flowering plants, Ninebark makes an impact from spring through fall. Even before it fully blooms in the spring, the closed buds are beautiful, round, and tinged pink.

Ninebark’s flowers have 5 white, round petals with a bright yellow center. Wispy, red-tipped stamens give the domed flower clusters a fuzzy appearance. Common Ninebark has lovely chartreuse leaves, but some varieties have stunning bronze or gold foliage.

As a low-maintenance plant, Ninebark grows in wet and dry conditions and all soil types. It just doesn’t tolerate heat well. Shape it up occasionally and add mulch at the end of the season.

Oleander

Scientific Name: Nerium oleander

• Plant Type: Evergreen or deciduous shrub or small tree
• Geographic Origin: the Mediterranean and Asia
• Plant Size: 3-20 feet, depending on the variety
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sun
• Plant Zone: 1-10

Don’t shy away from this heat-loving plant called Oleander if you live in the northern United States. It blooms from spring through fall in Zone 8, and it grows evergreen in Zones 8-10. It has long green leaves that grow thick and frilly vase-shaped flowers in small clusters. You’ll find it in several shades of pink, red, and white.

Common in the Mediterranean, Oleander tolerates salt spray well and prefers full sun. It’s used to alkaline, sandy soil but adapts to different soil conditions. Just water it when the topsoil gets dry.

Orange Jasmine

Scientific Name: Murraya paniculata

• Plant Type: Evergreen shrub or small tree
• Geographic Origin: Australia and Asia
• Plant Size: 8-12 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sun
• Plant Zone: 9-12

While Mock Orange handles cool climates well, go with Orange Jasmine if you live in warmer climates. It’s not true Jasmine, but it is a fragrant shrub with leathery oval leaves and small 5-petal flowers. After the flowers bloom, they cycle out to produce vibrant reddish-orange berries.

In Zone 10, grow it in a container and bring it in for the winter. It loves loamy, well-drained soil. Water it once a week. Plan on pruning it once in the spring and again in the fall.

Pearlbush

Scientific Name: Exochorda x macrantha

• Plant Type: Deciduous shrub
• Geographic Origin: Asia
• Plant Size: 5-10 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sun
• Plant Zone: 5-9

When it comes to show-stopping white flowering bushes, Pearlbush does the trick! From spring through fall, abundant blooms weigh down the long arching branches. Short racemes of pearl-like buds give way to small, bright white blooms.

Bright green leaves make this dense shrub a great border hedge. It grows easily in all kinds of soil but blooms best with full sun and moist, well-drained soil on the acidic side. Pearlbush should be pruned as soon as flowers die off.

Potentilla

Scientific Name: Potentilla fruticosa

• Plant Type: Deciduous shrub
• Geographic Origin: North America, Europe, and Asia
• Plant Size: 1-4 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sun
• Plant Zone: 2-9, depending on the variety

Potentilla is also called Shrubby Cinquefoil. Each flower has 5 rounded petals with a yellow center. It also has herbaceous foliage featuring 5-finger green leaves. White varieties of Potentilla are often called Barren Strawberry for the way they mimic the look without the fruit!

This is an ideal addition for newer gardeners looking for white flowering shrubs. It grows generously from spring to fall. Give it full sun and loamy, moist soil, and leave it alone. It blooms so well that you may have to prune it just to keep the flowers from choking out the plant! Potentilla is very drought- and salt-resistant and doesn’t mind the cold.

Rose of Sharon

Scientific Name: Hibiscus syriacus

• Plant Type: Deciduous shrub
• Geographic Origin: Asia
• Plant Size: 8-12 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sub
• Plant Zone: 1-8

Rose of Sharon loves to make a statement with large showy flowers with papery petals and 1 prominent stamen. You can find it in every color of the rainbow except green. The leaves are decorative with 3 fingers and go from light to dark green during the year.

You might be surprised to learn that this is a great flower for newer gardeners. It’s a low-maintenance shrub. Just water it enough to keep the soil moist, but make sure that it has well-drained soil with a neutral pH. Prune it before the first blooms and then occasionally to keep it shaped up.

Serviceberry

Scientific Name: Amelanchier spp.

• Plant Type: Deciduous shrub or small tree, depending on the variety
• Geographic Origin: North America
• Plant Size: 4-40 feet, depending on the variety
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sun
• Plant Zone: 3-9, depending on the variety

Also called Juneberry of Sugar Plum, Serviceberry is known for its edible red or purple berries. There are about 2 dozen species that produce shrubs and tree varieties. Among them, the shape and size of the flowers vary a little. However, they all feature white blooms and small elliptical leaves that turn bright orange in the fall.

Serviceberry is one of the white flowering shrubs that grow fast and easily. While it adapts well to many conditions, it blooms best in acidic, nutrient-rich soil. Be sure to prune after the last flowers.

Spiraea

Scientific Name: Spiraea spp.

• Plant Type: Deciduous shrub
• Geographic Origin: North America, Europe
• Plant Size: 1-20 feet tall, depending on species
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Plant Zone: 1-8

There are almost 100 species of Spiraea in every shade of purple, pink, red, orange, yellow, and white. They have round, flat, or cone-shaped clusters of small 5-petal flowers with long stamens. Most types have green oval leaves that turn orange in the fall. Most also explode with flower clusters in the spring through the summer.

When it comes to white flowering shrubs, they’re a great plant for new gardeners. Spiraea shrubs like full sun and neutral, well-drained soil. Water when the topsoil is dry. After the first freeze, prune back, water, and mulch Spiraea.

Snowflake Euphorbia

Scientific Name: Euphorbia leucocephala

• Plant Type: Semi-evergreen shrub
• Geographic Origin: North and Central America
• Plant Size: 6-10 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sun
• Plant Zone: 10-13

If you live in a warm climate, check out Snowflake Euphoria. The unique flowers are perennial, but the leaves are evergreen. It blooms for a few weeks in the winter, giving it the name “White Christmas Bush.” When it blooms in white florets, the rounded, low-mound shrub might look like it’s covered in snow!

Known to be a hardy species that is very tolerant to drought and humidity, it does well in many soil types but does best with slightly moist, well-drained soil. For the best appearance, prune well in the spring and again before the fall.

Summersweet

Scientific Name: Clethra alnifolia

• Plant Type: Deciduous shrub
• Geographic Origin: Eastern and the southern United States
• Plant Size: 3-8
• Sun Exposure: Full sun to shade
• Plant Zone: 1-9

Next on the list of white flowering shrubs is a US native with a striking appearance. Summersweet features long bottlebrush clusters of tiny white blooms that last from late spring through midsummer. It also has dark green leaves with serrated edges that turn orange in the fall.

You’ll often find it in coastal regions. It does well tolerating heat and salt spray. It likes acidic, sandy soil. Plant it along a creek or pond, and it won’t need much maintenance. Just water it in drought conditions and deadhead if you prefer.

Tea Olive

Scientific Name: Osmanthus fragrans

• Plant Type: Semi-evergreen shrub
• Geographic Origin: Asia
• Plant Size: 8-12 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sun
• Plant Zone: 7-12

Tea Olive, or “Fragrant Olive,” is known for its highly fruity-scented flowers. The shiny green leaves show all year-round. They’re a lovely contrast to tight round flower clusters of 4-petal flowers. Enjoy the blooms from spring through fall.

This plant loves humidity and tolerates heat and drought well. Just water it once a week, keeping the soil well-drained but moist.

Seven Son Flower

Scientific Name: Heptacodium miconioides

• Plant Type: Deciduous shrub or small tree
• Geographic Origin: China
• Plant Size: 10-20 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sun
• Plant Zone: 5-9

If you’re looking for unique white flowering bushes to add to your garden, check out Seven Son Flower. This tall-reaching shrub blooms in late summer through the fall. It features circular clusters of 7 flowers at the end of drooping stems. They die off in the fall, giving way to bright purple fruit.

The large, veined leaves die in the fall, but the show doesn’t end. The old bark fades in the winter, peeling and revealing dark brown bark underneath! This is a low-maintenance plant that handles all kinds of conditions well. Just water it regularly.

Viburnum

Scientific Name: Viburnum spp.

• Plant Type: Evergreen or deciduous shrub, depending on the variety
• Geographic Origin: North America
• Plant Size: 2-20 feet tall, depending on the variety
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sun
• Plant Zone: 1-9, depending on the variety

A popular addition for gardeners over the years, there are over 100 varieties of Viburnum. You’ll find all kinds of evergreen and deciduous types. They all have different types of leaves and flower cluster shapes. However, they tend to all feature tight flower bunches and bright berries.

Viburnum makes the list of flowering white shrubs for the stunning look of its fragrant white blooms. They look a little like Hydrangeas. All varieties prefer rich, well-drained soil and weekly watering.

Virginia Sweetspire

Scientific Name: Itea virginica

• Plant Type: Deciduous shrub
• Geographic Origin: North America
• Plant Size: 3-10 feet tall
• Sun Exposure: Full to partial sun
• Plant Zone: 2-10

The narrow bottlebrush spikes of tiny flowers make Virginia Sweetspire a lovely addition to your collection. The summer blooms attract all kinds of pollinators. In the fall through winter, the visually appealing arched branches have elliptical leaves that turn burning red!

Virginia Sweetspire prefers loamy, moist soil that’s acidic. Water twice a week until it’s established and then only when there’s a drought. You can prune it if you want to shape it up, but otherwise, it’s unnecessary.