Shrubs with red leaves are very useful to give special importance to an area, since red is a color that attracts all eyes. They are also usually pruning tolerant plants, which can be grown to the desired height almost effortlessly.
And that's not to mention that there are species that have showy flowers, which generally sprout in spring. So that let's see what types of red-leaved shrubs we can grow in pots or in the garden.
Acer palmatum var atropurpureum
Image - Wikimedia / Jerzy Opioła
El purple leaf japanese maple It is a tree-shaped shrub that is about 5 meters high. It has palmate and lobed leaves, purple in spring and fall, and green or reddish-green in summer (It will depend on the conditions in which you live: I have one in a pot in the south of the island of Mallorca and during the summer season it is greener than red). It lives best in shade, and needs an acidic soil or substrate, such as this. If you wish, you can prune it in late winter to always grow it in a pot. Otherwise, it resists up to -18ºC.
Aesculus neglecta 'Autumnfire'
Image - vdberk.es
It is known as false chestnut, and it is a large deciduous shrub that is 4 meters high, and can even reach 8 meters. Its leaves are made up of 5-7 leaflets or pinnae with a serrated margin, and are green in color except in autumn when they turn red before falling.. The flowers appear in clusters in spring, they are red and hermaphroditic. You need fertile, well-drained soil or soil. Resists up to -18ºC.
Berberis thunbergii 'Rose Glow'
Image - Flickr / FD Richards
It is a variety of barberry which has small, purple leaves that fall in fall / winter. It is a plant that reaches a height of 1 meter at most, ideal for informal hedges, or to be scattered throughout the garden or in specific areas. In addition, it is perfect for pots, and can even be worked as a bonsai. Supports up to -18ºC.
Hazelnut corylus 'Red Majestic'
Image - frankpmatthews.com
It is known as hazel, and the cultivar 'Red Majestic' is a 1-2 meter tall deciduous shrub that has a semi-weeping crown, that is, with the lower branches curved slightly downwards, almost touching the ground. It has dark purple leaves, although they turn reddish green as the months go by. In late winter, it produces flowers in purplish-pink catkins. Withstands frosts down to -8ºC.
hydrangea quercifolia
Image - emeraldplants.co.uk
La oak leaf hydrangea it is a deciduous shrub that reaches a height of 3 meters. Its leaves are green, but during the fall they turn purple before drying and falling.. The flowers are just as interesting: they start off white, then turn pink. These sprout in spring and summer. Of course, it is an acid plant, and therefore it needs acid soils, and not alkaline ones. Supports up to -18ºC.
Loropetalum chinensis var rubrum
El Lorikeet It is an evergreen shrub, of medium size, that reaches a meter in height. It has purple leaves throughout the year, and also produces red flowers from late winter to early spring. It is a very rustic variety, as well as precious, that wants sun and moderate watering. Withstands cold and frosts down to -12ºC.
domestic nandina
Image - Wikimedia / KENPEI
La domestic nandina, a shrub known as sacred bamboo, although not really related to bamboo, is an evergreen plant that reaches a height of up to 3 meters. Its leaves are petiolate, with elongated or ovate green leaflets except when they are sprouting and in autumn, when they turn red.. The flowers are small, white, and appear in spring. It tolerates pruning, as well as frosts down to -18ºC.
Physocarpus opulifolius 'Diabolo'
Image - Wikimedia / David J. Stang
It is a deciduous shrub that has trifoliate leaves which are purple in color.. It reaches a height of 1 to 2 meters, and produces white flowers in spring. These are grouped in rounded inflorescences, in a similar way to how hydrangeas do, plants that do not usually have red leaves.
Photinia xfraseri 'Red Robin'
Image - Wikimedia / Daniel VILLAFRUELA
La red leaf photinia it is a perennial shrub, which reaches 3 meters in height. Its leaves are green, but the new ones sprout bright red. During the summer they all turn purple, and in winter they turn green again. It tolerates pruning, as well as cold and frost down to -18ºC.
Prunus x cistena
Image - Flickr / FD Richards
It is known as purple leaf cherry, or dwarf red leaf plum, and is a hybrid between Prunus cerasifera y prunus pumila. It reaches a maximum height of 2,5 meters, and has leaves, as you can imagine, purple. Its flowers are white, with five petals, and measure about 2 centimeters. As it branches from the ground practically, when it blooms its branches are almost hidden. It is a marvel, which also resists frost without problems. In fact, it supports up to -18ºC.
Which of these red-leaved shrubs did you like the most?