Looking for some shrubs with blue flowers to round out your garden space? Most people that think about blue flowering bushes immediately think of hydrangea. But there’s actually a number of other blue flowering bushes that you can add to your home or garden space to give it a little more color!
Plants with blue flowers in general are fairly unique. You don’t see them very often, and when you do, it often results in a double-take due to their vivid blue blooms. While red shrubs are a bit more common, adding some blue to your garden space will liven it up a bit more.
So what bushes have blue flowers? In the following article, you’ll learn about some of our favorite blue flowered shrubs. You’ll learn their scientific names, what hardiness zones they grow in, and about how big they grow. Let’s take a deeper look at our favorite blue flowering shrubs, with names and pictures of each!
Blue is a cool, calming color that brings a sense of tranquility to any garden. While most flowering shrubs bloom for a short time in spring or summer, evergreen bushes with blue blossoms provide garden color all year long. Their vibrant blue hues stand out against the lush greenery.
Evergreen shrubs keep their leaves year-round rather than dropping them in fall and winter. This gives gardens and landscapes beautiful structure during the colder months. Pairing evergreens with stunning blue flowers creates eye-catching contrast.
Blue flowers are rare in nature Most blue-blooming shrubs contain special pigments, ions, and molecules that create the blue coloration. Some popular evergreen shrubs like hydrangeas only produce blue blossoms in acidic soil, which affects pigment production
This article features 10 spectacular evergreen bushes with blue flowers to brighten up your garden or yard Their brilliant blue blooms and lush greenery will add year-round curb appeal and visual interest
10 Top Evergreen Bushes with Vibrant Blue Flowers
1. Blue Billow Bigleaf Hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Blue Billow’)
This deciduous shrub has huge, pale blue lacecap flowerheads that bloom throughout summer The blue blossoms contrast beautifully with the big, shiny green leaves Growing 3-4 feet tall and wide, this hydrangea needs acidic soil to produce blue flowers. It thrives in partial shade.
2. Nikko Blue Bigleaf Hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Nikko Blue’)
Nikko Blue is a popular bigleaf hydrangea cultivar known for its large, vibrant blue mophead flowers. It blooms all summer into fall with blue clustered blooms up to 12 inches wide. This shrub grows 4-6 feet tall and wide. Plant it in acidic, organically rich soil.
3. Blue Chiffon Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus syriacus ‘Blue Chiffon’)
This rose of Sharon cultivar has stunning powderpuff-like double blue blooms contrasting with its red centers. The unique flowers are nearly seedless, reducing maintenance. The hardy, low-maintenance shrub grows 8-12 feet tall and tolerates heat, humidity, and drought.
4. Beyond Midnight Bluebeard (Caryopteris x clandonensis ‘Beyond Midnight’)
This compact shrub has deep blue late summer and fall flowers that attract pollinators. It has very dark green foliage that perfectly sets off the blue flower spikes. Growing to 2-2.5 feet tall and wide, it thrives with pruning and full sun in well-drained areas.
5. Blue Holly (Ilex x meserveae ‘Blue Princess’)
A hardy evergreen shrub, blue holly has spiny, glossy blue-green leaves and contrasts beautifully with red fall berries. Its pyramid shape adds great structure as a hedge or accent plant. Growing up to 10 feet tall and 6 feet wide, it tolerates pollution and prefers acidic soil.
6. Blue Girl Holly (Ilex x ‘Conabo’)
This compact, rounded female holly has vibrant blue berries covering the shrub in fall and winter. Its glossy green foliage takes on purple hues in cold weather. Only growing 3-4 feet tall and wide, it works well for foundations, borders, containers, and mass plantings.
7. Dwarf Blue Spruce (Picea pungens ‘Baby Blue’)
A hardy evergreen conifer, this compact spruce has eye-catching silvery-blue needles. It maintains a neat, rounded shape without pruning. Slow growing to only 2-3 feet tall and wide, it works beautifully in rock gardens, containers, and as a focal evergreen shrub.
8. Blue Rug Juniper (Juniperus horizontalis ‘Wiltonii’)
This spreading evergreen juniper has stunning steel blue foliage and a flat growing habit, forming a dense silvery-blue carpet. Its height reaches 1 foot tall while spreading 6-8 feet wide. It provides year-round color as a ground cover or cascading over walls, slopes, and planters.
9. Blue Star Juniper (Juniperus squamata ‘Blue Star’)
Identified by spiky, silvery-blue foliage, this juniper maintains a dense mound shape growing to 2 feet tall and 4 feet wide. Its layered branching provides cool visual texture and contrasts with any flowers or shrubs nearby. It works well in rock gardens, borders, and containers.
10. Cape Leadwort (Plumbago auriculata)
This sprawling evergreen shrub produces clusters of small, light blue flowers from spring to fall. Growing 10 feet tall with a vine-like spreading habit, its blue blooms stand out against the lush green leaves. It attracts butterflies and works beautifully over trellises, arbors, fences, or as groundcover.
Choosing the Right Spot for Evergreen Blue Shrubs
When selecting a location for evergreen shrubs with blue flowers, consider the plant’s mature size, sunlight needs, and preferred soil conditions. Most blue-blooming evergreen shrubs thrive best in full sun to achieve optimal flower production. Some do well in partial shade ordappled sunlight.
Plant blue evergreens together in groups or combined with contrasting colors and textures. For example, pair blue-flowering hydrangeas with red azaleas and yellow daylilies. Or accent a blue spruce with vibrant red-twigged dogwood shrubs.
Use blue evergreen shrubs as foundation plants, borders, screening hedges, or focal points. Low-growing varieties work beautifully in rock gardens, cascading over walls, or in containers. Their vibrant blue blossoms will make your garden pop all year long.
Caring for Evergreen Shrubs with Blue Flowers
Evergreen shrubs require minimal care when planted properly for their growing conditions. Here are some tips for looking after evergreens with blue flowers:
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Water deeply and regularly during the first year to establish the roots. Then water 1-2 inches per week during warm months depending on rainfall.
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Apply 2-4 inches of mulch around the base to conserve moisture and reduce weeds. Avoid piling mulch against the trunks and stems.
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Prune strategically in early spring before new growth emerges to shape plants and improve flowering. Avoid heavy pruning that removes too much greenery.
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Test and amend the soil pH if needed to maintain the ideal level for blue blooms on hydrangeas. An acidic pH of around 5.2-5.5 encourages blue pigments.
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Fertilize every spring with a balanced slow-release fertilizer to promote healthy growth and flowering.
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Protect shrubs from harsh winter winds and heavy snow if possible. Wrap or cover vulnerable plants to prevent damage.
With minimal care focused on their specific needs, evergreen shrubs with blue flowers will thrive for years of stellar performance. Their unique beauty livens up every season when not much else is blooming. Plant some evergreen blue beauties this year to boost your garden’s year-round curb appeal!
Blue Rose of Sharon
- Plant Type: Shrub
- Geographical Origin: East Asia
- Plant Size: 8 to 12 feet tall
- Sun Exposure: Full sun
- Plant Zone: 5-9
A sterile strain of the more popular Rose of Sharon, the Blue Rose of Sharon will not produce working seeds. However, this gorgeous plant provides worthwhile leafy greenery and fairytale-like blooms to your yard or garden.
With a shorter blooming period from mid-summer to autumn, each flower will only bloom a single day at a time. The flowers are a pale blue and about four inches across in diameter. They are delicate and lace-like blossoms with a layering of petals.
The Blue Rose of Sharon is a structural shrub, making it very useful as a hedge or yard border. A deciduous bush, it will lose its broad leaves every fall.
This version of the plant is also known as Blue Chiffon in garden centers. The flowers of the Rose of Sharon can look like lighter shades of blue, to a shrub with lavender flowers, depending on the plant.
- Plant Type: Shrub
- Geographical Origin: Mongolia
- Plant Size: 2 to 3 feet tall
- Sun Exposure: Full sun
- Plant Zone: 5-9
Also known as Blue Mist or Blue Spirea, the Bluebeard plant has a later blooming season, usually commencing in late summer and ending in the fall.
The dense, large leaves provide a thick base for the plant while flowering stems rise above. The leaves are often fragrant, giving out a gentle aroma similar to eucalyptus. The flowers themselves are small and pale blue or sometimes white. They clump together every few inches around the central stem, with each lower clump blooming first.
As the flowers open up, they put out long blue whiskers, giving them a similar look to thistles. The Bluebeard plant will attract butterflies and hummingbirds to your garden as summer comes to an end.
- Plant Type: Shrub
- Geographical Origin: Asia
- Plant Size: 2 to 3 feet
- Sun Exposure: Partial sun
- Plant Zone: 6-10
The Blue Rhododendron, or “Blue Tit” Rhododendron, is the blue-flowered version of the traditional shrub. Commonly utilized as a yard border or hedge, the Rhododendron is an evergreen with small dark leaves that last all year. As it is so dense and easily spread, the Blue Rhododendron needs careful pruning every season.
The flowers of the Blue Rhododendron grow in groups of three or five. The blossoms have trumpet shapes and usually emerge as a pale bluey-purple before darkening into a deeper blue.
- Plant Type: Perennial
- Geographical Origin: Central and North America
- Plant Size: 2 to 4 feet tall
- Sun Exposure: Full sun, partial sun
- Plant Zone: 3-9
Though not technically a shrub, the Blue False Indigo has a bushy base made up of large, dense leaves. A member of the pea family, Blue False Indigo uses several thin stalks to display its small flowers. Though not the source of real indigo, its juices can sometimes act as a substitute.
The blossoms are a pale blue to blue-purple color. They look very much like the flowers of the Pea plant, with three to four main petals that curve away from each other.
When emerging from the earth, new shoots of Blue False Indigo can resemble asparagus. However, this plant can be toxic to humans, especially children, and should not be eaten.
- Plant Type: Shrub
- Geographical Origin: North America
- Plant Size: 4 to 6 feet tall
- Sun Exposure: Full sun
- Plant Zone: 7-10
Also known as Soap Bush or Ceanothus, the California Lilac is one of the easiest blue flowering shrubs to grow. The shrub doesn’t need much coaxing to thrive, and it can sprout faster than you think.
Just like any other Lilac bush, the California Lilac has clusters of tiny flowers that form bottle brush shapes all over the plant. Each individual flower is a slender trumpet-like shape, and together with dozens of its fellows, they form stunning cone-like blooms.
The California Lilac has a range of blue colors, from darker blues to paler purple-blue hues. It attracts birds, bees, and butterflies. It can also function as a stand-alone shrub or tree or a partial yard barrier.
- Plant Type: Shrub
- Geographical Origin: Mediterranean
- Plant Size: 3 to 16 feet
- Sun Exposure: Full sun
- Plant Zone: 6
The Chaste Tree looks similar to a Lilac bush but does better in climates with hotter summers. It has long, spiky leaves and cones of flowers. The flowers are either white, pink, or a purply-blue. However, the individual blooms are less similar to those of Lilacs, as they don’t grow quite so dense.
Chaste Trees can be stand-alone shrubs or part of a yard border. They are sometimes looked to for medicinal purposes to combat premenstrual syndrome, among other things. However, there is no conclusive evidence that a Chaste Tree can be beneficial as a medicine or health product.
- Plant Type: Perennial
- Geographical Origin: North and South America
- Plant Size: 6 to 12 inches tall
- Sun Exposure: Full sun
- Plant Zone: 10-11
A diminutive version of the Morning Glory vine, Dwarf Morning Glory can function as a small bush or potted plant. The stems of the plant keep the vine-like quality of the parent version, allowing the foliage of the Dwarf Morning Glory to become woody and dense.
The flowers are wide-spread trumpet shapes up to two inches across in diameter. Unlike other blue flowering plants, the Dwarf Morning Glory blossoms are a royal blue color, providing a definitive splash of blue for your garden. The center of each flower is a gold and white circle, allowing the bright blue edges even more definition.
9 Evergreen Shrubs Everyone Asks About Must Have for Your Garden!
FAQ
What is the evergreen with tiny blue flowers?
Ornamental gardeners hold the Blue Blossom Ceanothus in high regard for its abundant bright-blue flowers – a rarity in the ornamental garden. The glossy evergreen leaves look attractive through all the seasons and do not lose their attractive shine in summer heat or winter chill.
Where is the best place to plant ceanothus?
Grow ceanothus in moist but well-drained soil in full sun in a sheltered spot.
What is the evergreen climber with small blue flowers?
Not often offered for sale in the UK, Sollya heterophylla is an evergreen climber which is grown for its nodding clusters of blue, bluebell-like flowers. Also known as the Australian bluebell creeper, it’s perfect for training over a pergola or arch in a sheltered, sunny spot in milder parts of the UK.
What evergreen shrub has blue berries in winter?
Gin Fizz Juniperus
For berries well before and after autumn, plant Gin Fizz juniper. This distinguished evergreen was selected for its abundant crop of hard blue fruits that nestle among the foliage from early summer all through winter.
Are blue bushes evergreen?
Blue is an elegant yet uncommon flower color that adds a refreshing pop of color to garden landscapes. While most blue flowering plants are deciduous shrubs and perennials, there are some attractive evergreen bushes that produce eye-catching blue blooms. These hardy bushes keep their leaves year-round while providing a beautiful floral display.
What shrubs have blue flowers?
Shop our range of shrubs with blue flowers, including buddleia, caryopteris, ceanothus, hebe, hydrangea, lavender, rosemary and vinca. Light and pale blues and bluey-purples work well in soft colour schemes to bring a sense of calm to the garden. What is an evergreen shrub with large flowers? Camellia.
What are the different types of blue-flowering shrubs?
From the delicate blue hydrangea to the striking bluebeard and the beautiful blue butterfly bush, there are many types of blue-flowering shrubs to choose from. Blue flowers are rare in nature because plants lack blue pigments. The blue color in flowers comes from a combination of pigments, ions, and molecules.
Do blue flowering evergreen bushes keep their leaves year-round?
These hardy bushes keep their leaves year-round while providing a beautiful floral display. Adding blue flowering evergreen bushes to your garden allows you to enjoy cool blue hues throughout the seasons. The blue flowers elegantly complement the deep green foliage.
Are blue flowering bushes easy to find?
They are not always easy to find because blue is not a pigment often found in plants. Especially in shrubs. Breeders have worked hard to introduce it but most of the plants that are labelled blue are not a true clear blue, but rather a shade of purple with blue overtones. So finding and using blue flowering bushes is a labor of love.
Do blue flowering bushes have blue overtones?
Especially in shrubs. Breeders have worked hard to introduce it but most of the plants that are labelled blue are not a true clear blue, but rather a shade of purple with blue overtones. So finding and using blue flowering bushes is a labor of love.