Multicolored Flowering Bushes

Shrubs with multiple colours of blooms could be combined with plant multitasking, with a great deal of eye appeal to one instead of several types of shrubs. You can find a similar effect with shrubs which have multiple leaf colours or marked seasonal color changes. Multicolored shrubs work well in little gardens and in areas where you are able to enjoy them up close. Multiple flower colors owe their presence to plant breeders and to the chemistry found in some plants which have color changes during the life of this blossom.

Many-Hued Flower Clusters

Flowering from spring to the fall, lantanas (Lantana camara) have multiple colours in the clusters of flowers at branch ends. Blossoms have a tendency to have hues of related colours. Bushes grow 3 to 6 feet tall and 1 to 4 feet wide, depending on the cultivar. Start looking for “Miss Huff,” with flowers shading from orange and coral pink to golden. It is hardy in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 7 through 11. A lantana little enough for container use, “Patriot Rainbow” reaches 12 to 15 inches high and wide and is hardy in USDA zones 9 through 11. Flowers go from yellow to orange and deep pink. Lantanas are invasive in some regions of the U.S.

Showy Color-Changing Blooms

You might think of aging flowers as a rather ugly scenario, but not so with a couple of flowering shrubs. The big, trumpet-shaped flowers of “Magnifica” yesterday, today and tomorrow bush (Brunfelsia pauciflora “Magnifica”) open a deep lavender color and then era over a few days to delicate lavender, followed by almost white. The evergreen shrub does well in full sunlight in USDA zones 9 through 11. It is acceptable for a container if you wish to transfer it to a more sheltered place in winter. For a warm, dry, sunny area, think about the showy blossoms of peacock flower (Caesalpinea pulcherrima, hardy in USDA zones 9 to 11). New blooms are orange-yellow and era to deep red. Flower stalks stretch above a clump of feathery leaves.

Multiple Colors in One Flower

Occasionally a single blossom includes multiple colours. An example is that the evergreen tropical hibiscus (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis). The flowers are 4 to 8 inches wide and come in many colors but black and blue. Cultivars can combine three or four colours in pastel or bold mixtures. Hardy at USA zones 9 through 11, hibiscus can also develop in containers. Roses (Rosa x hybrida) are famous for multiple-colored flowers. The iconic “Peace” rose, published at the end of World War II, combines tones of yellow and pink at a hybrid tea that’s hardy in USDA zones 5 through 9. Also growing in USDA zones 5 through 9, “Brigadoon” rose displays pink and coral orange petals which have changeable colours, depending on the weather.

Multiple Leaf Colors

Shrubs with variegated leaves and vibrant flowers give numerous colours to the backyard. “Raspberry Ice” (Bougainvillea “Raspberry Ice”) is an example of a small, compact shrub acceptable for containers, including hanging baskets, or a little space. It grows 2 feet tall and wide in USDA zones 9 through 11. Amazing pink flowers appear over cream-margined green leaves. The newest foliage of “Flaming Silver” Japanese pieris (Pieris japonica “Flaming Silver”) is much more vibrant than its spring white blooms. Bright pinkish-red new development unfolds into green and white variegated leaves. Hardy in USDA zones 6a through 10b, this shrub prefers well-drained, shady locations.

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