Learn more about 20 colorfulwinter shrubsyou should grow sporting either berries, interesting bark, or evergreen leaves.

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Inkberry Holly (Ilex glabra)

Hollies are broadleaf evergreen shrubs.

winter shrubs

David Beaulieu

Many types are available, offering a wide array of features.

Inkberry stands out from some of the holly shrubs you may know because its berries are black.

It also tolerates wet ground well.

Firethorn shrub

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Leaning into its pillar-like appearance, many homeowners grow one on each side of a front entry.

The plant is also quite drought-tolerant once it has been established.

While the better-known red chokeberry has red berries, black chokeberry bears dark purple (almost black) berries.

Camellia

The Spruce / Kara Riley

They stay on the bush well into the winter and are a good emergency food source for wild birds.

But this bark doesn’t peel; what makes it special is its bright red color.

Ninebark (Physocarpus opulifolius)

Like oakleaf hydrangea, the ninebarks sport a peeling bark in winter.

Inkberry holly shrub growing in front of a fence.

David Beaulieu

This needled evergreen can also be decorated to function as an outdoor Christmas tree.

Its needle-like foliage retains good color through the winter.

English Boxwood (Buxus spp.)

Blue Princess holly with berries

David Beaulieu

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Boxwoods are broadleaf evergreens legendary for their delicate leaves.

They are often planted in a line and sheared into hedges.

The foliage sometimes becomes tinged with a bronze color in winter.

Winterberry holly shrub branches with bright red berries and rounded leaves in sunlight

The Spruce / Evgeniya Vlasova

Moonshadow Euonymus (E. fortunei ‘Moonshadow’)

Euonymus is a broadleaf evergreen.

They come in all shapes, colors, and sizes.

A number of them, like Little Giant, have rounded shapes.

Sky Pencil holly with its proportionately thin form.

David Beaulieu

Because of this, it’s often grown in a row to form a privacy screen.

One shrub that will still flower in winter is witch hazel.

Berries of Cotoneaster x suecicus ‘Coral-Beauty.'

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Black chokeberry with berries.

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Oakleaf Hydrangea in the Fall

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Red-twig dogwood with other plants in background.

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Yellow-twig dogwood shrub with thin yellow stems and small buds

The Spruce / Evgeniya Vlasova

Common ninebark shrub

The Spruce / Evgeniya Vlasova

mugo pine

The Spruce / Evgeniya Vlasova

Two dwarf Alberta spruce trees in garden with other plants.

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King’s Gold false cypress with its golden foliage.

David Beaulieu

Green mountain boxwood leaves

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Moonshadow euonymus used as groundcover.

David Beaulieu

emerald n gold euonymus

The Spruce / Autumn Wood

Four Little Giant Dwarf Arborvitae in the garden with other plants

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Emerald Green arborvitae shrubs growing in a loose hedge.

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