Tips For Planting Small Shrubs

Small shrubs can provide just the touch needed to create your perfect landscape in Florida. A small shrub is one that can be trimmed to have 3 feet in height or less. You can choose from low growers and from a variety of dwarf shrubs. In general, a shrub is a “dwarf” if it won’t grow to be very large when mature or will grow slowly or both. For gardeners who prefer easy maintenance, dwarf shrubs are ideal.

Cypress Creek Landscape Supply has a great selection of small shrubs in our Garden Center. You can choose from robust green shrubs such as Japanese Boxwood and Junipers and from luxuriant flowering shrubs, including Drift Roses and Dwarf Azaleas. At Cypress Creek, we also carry all the supplies you need for a flourishing landscape and garden.

Planting Small Shrubs

There are certain things to consider when planting small shrubs in order to ensure that they flourish. The following planting tips can help you get the most enjoyment from your small shrubs:

Choose a place for planting that provides the amount of sunlight needed. The plant’s size when mature, soil pH, and soil type should also be taken into consideration.
When digging a hole for planting a small shrub, the hole should be at least 1 inch shallower and 1 ½ times wider than the root ball.
Trim off the root’s outer periphery in its entirety.
Set the plant in the hole. Don’t put any soil on the top but do fill soil in around the sides of the root ball.
Add mulch all around the shrub but not on top of the root ball.

Watering Guidelines

Your new shrubs need some time to adjust to their new environment. The following watering tips for three-gallon shrubs can help:

If you are in southern Florida, every four days apply one gallon of water.
Gardeners in northern Florida should apply one gallon of water and perhaps a bit more every eight days.

Once the roots of the shrubs grow to the outer edge of the canopy, they can survive and flourish with little to no irrigation. This process takes from 20 to 28 weeks. So, in the meantime, it is more efficient and effective to apply light, frequent irrigation as opposed to less frequent watering with larger volumes.

Landscape Ideas for Small Shrubs

Small shrubs have a plethora of benefits for Florida gardeners in suburban and urban settings. They are low maintenance, look perfect in small yards, and have minimal disease and pest problems. Small shrubs are an excellent choice for almost any garden landscape. The following are a few of the great places to put small shrubs in landscapes:

Underneath low windows
At the entry
Lining a driveway or walking path
As foundation plants
A backdrop for annuals, low perennials, and groundcovers
Along the front of a low porch
Create a friendly property line fence