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With the onset of spring, it is getting greener and more colorful outside. Not only flowers provide color, but also bushes with red leaves in a wide variety of nuances.

In a nutshell

  • Red color when sprouting, all year round or bright red in autumn
  • the vegetable pigment anthocyanin is responsible for the colour
  • red leaves contain more dye than chlorophyll
  • green leaf color is practically hidden under the red tones
  • Red-leaved plants offer numerous combination and design options

Dwarf shrubs with red foliage

Purple Violet 'Purpurea' (Weigela florida)

  • Slow-growing, richly flowering shrub
  • Overhanging, bushy growth
  • Height 120-150cm
  • Foliage initially reddish, later turning green
  • Flowering period late May to June
  • Small, bell-shaped, dark pink flowers

Belt Flower 'Fire Dance' (Loropetalum chinense)

  • Strongly branched, bushy, dense and fragrant shrub
  • Growth height 70-150 cm
  • Leaves ovate, dark red, glossy
  • Pink, strap-shaped petals
  • Blooms from March to April
  • Exotic looking, fragrant, bright pink flowers

Sage 'Purpurascens' (Salvia officinalis)

  • Pillow-like growth, woody at the base
  • Growth height 30-60 cm
  • Elongated purple-purple leaves
  • Blooms from June to August
  • Spike-shaped, violet-blue flowers
  • Leaves and flowers exude a delicate, pleasant fragrance

Grape Heather 'Scarletta' (R) (Leucothoe axillaris)

  • Flat, compact and overhanging growth
  • About 40-50 cm high
  • Shoots bronze, later gradually turning green
  • Intense red in autumn and winter
  • Blooms from May to June
  • Delicately fragrant, white flower clusters

Medium tall shrubs

Dark red slotted maple 'Garnet' (Acer palmatum)

  • Weak shrub
  • Ideal for keeping buckets
  • Growth height up to 150 cm
  • Purple, deeply dissected foliage
  • Turns bright red in autumn

Tip: Japanese maples are available with different leaf shapes and colours. The red-leaved varieties include 'Shaina', 'Inaba shidare' and 'Pung Kil'.

Pike rose, red-leaved (Rosa glauca)

  • One of the most beautiful hedge plants
  • Loosely upright with overhanging shoots
  • Leaves bluish-green fading to purple, frosted
  • Brown-red shoots with pike-blue frosting
  • Pink flowers with a pretty gradient in June/July

Tip: The pike rose Rosa glauca supplies rose hips rich in vitamin C from September. It also attracts birds and insects into the garden.

Red-leaved lilac berry 'Black Tower' (R) (Sambucus nigra)

  • Grows compact and columnar, up to 200 cm high
  • Contrasting glossy black-red foliage
  • Flowers from June to July
  • Simple, umbel-shaped with a pink and white pattern
  • Bears tasty berries

Shadowbell 'Mountain Fire' (Pieris japonica)

  • Compact, slow-growing small shrub
  • Growth heights between 120 and 160 cm
  • Different shades of red when budding
  • Long-lasting red colour, turning green later
  • Flowers from late March to May
  • Flowers white and in panicles
  • Protected location

Tall shrubs

Types from A - J

Bloodbarberry 'Atropurpurea' (Berberis thunbergii)

  • Grows upright, very dense, slightly overhanging shoots
  • Studded with thorns
  • Very frost hardy and cut resistant
  • Up to 300 cm high
  • Dark red leaves, bright red in autumn
  • Blooms from May to June
  • Small single clusters of yellow-red flowers
  • Red fruit decorations in autumn

Double flower (Disanthus cercidifolius)

Source: Alpsdake, Disanthus cercidifolius (leaf s6), edited by Plantopedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
  • Dense, upright shrub, good frost hardiness
  • Growth height up to 300 cm
  • Heart-shaped, blue-green leaves
  • In autumn in the most beautiful shades of red
  • Late flowering from October to November
  • Star-shaped purple-violet flowers

Dark red bladderworm 'Diabolo' (R) (Physocarpus opulifolius)

  • Grows stiffly upright and bushy
  • Growth heights of 200-300 cm
  • Dark red foliage, orange-red fall color
  • Flowering period from May to July
  • Strongly contrasting white flower umbels

Tip: This dark red bubble spar is a great color addition to green hedges or in front of light-colored walls.

Photinia fraseri 'Red Robin'

  • Grows loosely upright to broadly bushy
  • Growth heights between 150 and 300 cm
  • Leaves bright red when sprouting
  • Later transitioning to coppery-green
  • White flowers in the form of umbrella panicles from May to June
  • Fruit not suitable for consumption
  • Winter protection recommended

Tip: Due to the limited winter hardiness you should pay attention to a wind-protected location.

Kinds of K - Z

Canadian Judas Tree 'Ruby Falls' (Cercis canadensis)

  • Extraordinary cultivation of the Judas tree
  • Ornamental shrub or small tree
  • Growth height 200-400 cm
  • Flowers appear before leaves sprout
  • Bright pink, butterfly-like
  • Sitting directly on twigs and branches
  • Leaves heart-shaped and deep red, very contrasting
  • Orange tinge in autumn

Tip: Younger specimens are grateful for a light winter protection.

Smoke Tree 'Royal Purple' (Cotinus coggygria)

  • Broad, bushy, sprawling growth, up to 300 cm high
  • Intense black-red foliage
  • Flowering period from June to July
  • Flower at the same time fruit decoration
  • Initially greenish, then brownish, panicles up to 15 cm in size
  • Then wig-like, silvery-reddish infructescences

Purple Hazel 'Purpurea' (Corylus maxima)

  • Initially stiffly upright, umbrella-like when old, bushy
  • Between 200 and 300 cm high
  • Flowers before leaves shoot in March/April
  • Leaves bright red when sprouting
  • Constant black-red throughout the summer
  • Round, edible nuts in autumn

Corkscrew hazel 'Red Majestic' (Corylus maxima)

  • Grows bushy, upright, multi-stemmed
  • Shoots twisted like a corkscrew, rare variant
  • Between 200 and 250 cm high
  • Dark crimson shoots, then reddish foliage
  • Flowering time February to March
  • Red, elongated kittens

Dwarf blood plum (Prunus cistena)

  • Slow, upright, multi-stemmed growth
  • Growth height 150-250 cm
  • Foliage dark red, slightly glossy
  • Flowers from late April to May
  • Small, simple, radial, pink-white flowers
  • Dark red edible fruits

large shrubs

Purple Sloe 'Purpurea' (Prunus spinosa)

  • Upright, bushy, heavily branched growth
  • Growth heights up to 500 cm
  • Shoots purple, later red-green
  • Orange in autumn
  • Blooms from April to May
  • Flowers star-shaped, soft pink, directly on the branches

Tip: The sloe forms globular, blue-frosted, edible fruits. Their taste is sweet and sour.

Red-leaved cellulosic (Corylus avellana)

  • Medium-strong, broadly upright, well-branched habit
  • Growth heights of 300-600 cm
  • Red leaves when they shoot, turning green over the summer
  • Blooms from March to April
  • Inconspicuous, elongated reddish kittens
  • Edible, reddish hazelnuts in autumn

Tip: For better fertilization, it is advisable to plant two or more specimens.

Red-leaved Carnation 'Royal Burgundy' (Prunus serrulata)

  • Elegant foliage plant with Far Eastern flair
  • Large shrub with a funnel-shaped crown
  • Height of growth 400 to 700 cm
  • Leaves deep violet to crimson
  • Magnificent bronze-orange to copper-brown in autumn
  • Flowering time late April to May
  • Small, double, umbellate, dark pink flowers

Crabapple 'Rudolph' (Malus)

  • Grows as a large shrub or small tree
  • Slim upright habit
  • Up to 600 cm high
  • Attractive brown-red foliage colour
  • A special splash of color during the flowering period from May to June
  • Single pink cupped flowers
  • Small, yellow-orange ornamental apples from September

Tip: This ornamental apple is a very good pollinator for nearby apple trees.

frequently asked Questions

What should you consider when planting red-leaved shrubs?

Basically, they are best in sunny places. The further they are in partial shade or shade, the greener the leaves become.

What design options do shrubs with red foliage offer?

These shrubs are often excellent specimen trees thanks to their coloring or their contrasting flowers. They give the garden structure and height. You can combine different varieties and growth heights or use low-growing shrubs and other companion plants as foreground plants. Some red-leaved shrubs are also suitable for group plantings or as hedge plants.

What is the best way to fertilize shrubs?

Deciduous trees need basic fertilization in the spring, for example in the form of horn shavings. Flowering shrubs are supported with a liquid fertilizer during flowering. Fertilization shortly before winter should generally be avoided, as it increases susceptibility to frost.

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Garden plants