How to Plant Shrubs

Before you pick shrubs to plant, know your site. Make sure the shrubs you choose will thrive in your area’s climate. Plant each shrub in a spot that meets its needs for light. If you put a shade plant in a full sun site, or a sun-loving shrub in a deep shade site, you won’t have much success.

Good gardeners read plant tags and research online. Here’s what sun and shade terms mean:

• “Full sun” is six or more hours of sunlight a day.
• “Partial sun” is four to six hours of sunlight.
• “Partial shade” is two to four hours of sunlight.
• “Full shade” means no direct sun or less than two hours of sunlight a day. Full shade can typically be found on the north side of a house or under a deep tree canopy.

Most shrubs thrive in a wide variety of soils as long as they are well-draining soils. If your native soil is clay or rocky, amend with organic matter like compost to improve drainage.

When you see “full sun,” that means the shrub needs at least six hours of sunlight a day. Once established, plants rated for full sun can take the heat all day long, although many appreciate shady relief from the late afternoon heat in August. Look for shade from trees or structures on the west side of your property to help there.

Full sun shrubs include:

• Abelia
• Barberry
• Arborvitae
• Boxwood
• Buddleia (butterfly bush)
• Crape Myrtle
• Cryptomeria
• Elaeagnus
• Holly
• Ligustrum
• Rosemary
• Serviceberry
• Vitex (chaste tree)
• Weigela

“Part shade to full sun” means three to six hours of sunlight. Plants that thrive in partial shade need either a slow start to their day, with summer sun reaching them close to the noon hour, or an early end with a break from the hot afternoon sun. Hydrangea macrophylla is an example of a part shade shrub. While panicle hydrangeas like “Limelight,” “Quick Fire” and “Pinky Winky” hold up under intense summer sun, big-leafed hydrangea macrophylla wilt from too much heat.

Part shade to full sun shrubs include:

• Anise tree (sometimes called “banana shrub”)
• American beautyberry (callicarpa)
• Azalea
• Camellia
• Cleyera
• Distylium
• Gardenia
• Holly
• Hydrangea
• Loropetalum
• Nandina

“Part sun to full shade” plants need fewer than three hours of sunlight a day. For blooming shrubs, keep in mind that more sun equals more blooms.

Part sun to full shade shrubs include:

• Edgeworthia (paper bush)
• Hydrangea macrophylla
• Oakleaf hydrangea
• Mahonia
• Pieris
• Rhododendron
• Yew

Before visiting the Garden Center at The Home Depot, do your research. For inspiration, look at what your neighbors are growing. See what’s succeeding in nearby yards and what’s not. Go on home garden tours. Note what you like and ask the homeowners about plants that catch your eye. Plant identification, learning how long it takes to get the plants established and noting any problems will help you as you plan. 

When shopping, look for shrubs with full, healthy growth. Shrubs are an investment, so take the time to check the roots. It's OK to carefully pull the plant out of the container and slide it back in. You want the roots to show that the plant hasn’t recently been transplanted to the nursery pot. You don’t want the roots coming out the bottom or wrapped around in a root mass. 

The traditional method for planting shrubs called for digging a hole twice as wide and as deep as the root ball, followed by amending the soil in the bottom with rich compost or organic matter before settling the shrub in place. Experts say the twice as wide part is still good advice, but the twice as deep part is outdated. 

You want the hole to be no deeper than the container the shrub was growing in. You also want the hole to be slightly high. An easy way to gauge this is to lay the shovel or tool used to dig the hole across the hole’s opening. The plant should be either equal to or higher than the tool.

Amending the hole with organic matter like compost is beneficial. However, it’s not necessary to add it to the bottom of the hole, because roots grow out, not necessarily down. Also, there’s gardening tough love at play here. All that rich goodness makes for a spoiled plant. You’ll find that nourishing the plant the way nature does, from the top down, works well. Top dress the shrub with compost and mulch.

There are lots of options for digging tools. Post hole diggers are nice to get the digging started. Digging forks are useful for loosening soil. Shovels work well for moving dirt around. If you're planting a lot of shrubs, an auger can create multiple holes quickly.

• Water shrubs in their nursery pots before you begin to dig.
• Dig the hole two to three times as wide and only as deep as the root ball.
• With a garden knife or the side of a trowel, break up the root ball on the shrub and settle the plant into the hole. Position the plant so the top of the root ball is slightly above grade.
• Fill in with native soil to the top of the root ball.
• Mulch around the shrub. Don’t pile it around the stem, though, because that just attracts insects. Give it some breathing room.
• Top with a few scoopfuls of compost.
• Water the shrub. Continue watering it every few days until it's established.

Once you’ve planted your shrubs, thoroughly water them until the roots are established. Immediately after planting, water deeply by setting a hose or a sprinkler on the lowest setting under the plant until water penetrates 8 to 10 inches. Water again the following day to allow soil to settle and reduce large air pockets. Water slowly once a week for the first season, saturating 8 to 10 inches deep.

Don’t overwater. The easiest way to check soil moisture is to stick an 8-inch screwdriver into the soil. If you can’t poke it in at least 6 inches, it’s time to water.

A metal bubbler sprinkler head is useful for gently soaking new shrubs. A soaker hose is another great solution for giving shrubs the moisture they need while getting established. You can even set up a timer on the outside faucet to attach the soaker hose.
If using an irrigation system, be sure the water reaches the roots.