Replace perennials with shrubs for a low-maintenance landscape

The older I get, the larger my gardens seem. Although they have not actually grown in physical size, it takes me longer to weed them, cut back perennials in them, and water them in dry conditions than it did ten years ago. Sound familiar?

There are several ways to decrease the time spent maintaining the garden. Planting containers with annuals that don't require deadheading, drought-tolerant perennials that don't require supplemental watering, and installing more hardscape to reduce the time spent mowing and raking the lawn are just a few.

Another way to decrease the time spent maintaining the perennials in beds and borders is to replace them with small shrubs. Most shrubs require very little pruning, and some don't need any at all. Many shrubs flower as beautifully and as long as perennials. Evergreen shrubs add color to the border all year long, and deciduous shrubs offer structure and form to the winter garden.

Some offer colorful foliage all season, others may be green in spring and summer before contributing lovely fall color to the landscape, and some give another season of interest with berries.

Mr. Bowling Ball is a pint-size arborvitae. It is nearly impossible to pass by its lacy, sage green foliage without stroking it. It grows in a round mound without pruning. Mr. Bowling Ball is not fussy about soil but does require a spot in full sun. It grows up to 3 feet tall and wide.

The bright yellow flowers of Nightglow diervilla light up against the dark burgundy foliage on these compact shrubs growing 2 to 3 feet tall and wide. Plant it in full sun for the best show of blooms. Hummingbirds, bees and butterflies are attracted to its flowers.

The slender green leaves of a weigela called My Monet are edged in white and sometimes splashed with pink. Soft pink flowers appear in late spring and then sporadically throughout the summer. This tough shrub can handle the conditions in an exposed site and is adaptable to many different types of soil. Plant My Monet as a focal point in the front of the garden in full sun to light shade.

Weigela Fine Wine is another beauty. It features dark burgundy foliage spring, summer and fall. In spring, the foliage is a beautiful backdrop for the deep pink flowers. Best foliage color is achieved in full sun, but the plant will also grow in light shade. Fine Wine grows 2 to 3 feet tall and wide while the form remains tight and upright. It is not fussy about soil conditions as long as it is well drained.

Another shrub with dark burgundy foliage, Physocarpus Little Devil, is an angel in the landscape and a great alternative to thorny barberries. It has all the attributes of larger ninebarks in a small package, topping out at 4 feet tall and wide. Domed clusters of small white flowers brighten the ends of branches in early summer. Little Devil is tough. It will grow in dry or moist conditions in full sun or part shade.

Choose siraea Magic Carpet for its fabulous foliage. New leaves emerge red before maturing to gold and then turning russet red in the fall. Clusters of small deep pink flowers begin blooming in early summer and re-bloom if pruned after flowering. Magic Carpet grows 18 to 24 inches tall and wide.

Rainbow Fizz is another spirea with pretty leaves of copper, yellow and red. It is taller than Magic Carpet, reaching up to 4 feet tall and wide. Red flower buds open to fuzzy pink flowers sporadically all summer long. Plant spireas in full sun to light shade in well-drained soil.

• Diana Stoll is a horticulturist, garden writer and speaker. She blogs at gardenwithdiana.com.