best shrubs to plant in front of house
Choosing the best shrubs to plant in front of house can transform your home's exterior, adding year-round colour, structure, and curb appeal. Whether you want a mix of evergreen foliage, seasonal flowers, or low-maintenance varieties, the right shrubs provide a welcoming first impression and help showcase your garden’s style. From classic flowering options to modern foliage plants, here’s how to select and care for shrubs that thrive around New Zealand homes.
Pieris Pink Delight (Lily Of The Valley Shrub Pieris japonica)
Pieris Pink Delight is an attractive shrub grown for both its foliage and flowers. This compact, rounded shrub produces pink buds that open into pink, urn shaped flowers during spring. The flowers are complemented with glossy foliage that emerges bronze and matures to become lush and dark green as it grows to 75 cm tall and the same wide. Pieris Pink Delight makes for a superb specimen in a small garden or courtyard and is well suited to being maintained in a container, adding to mixed and border plantings, including in formal and cottage gardens, or for planting around outdoor living areas.
Chlorophytum comosum variegatum (Spider Plant)
Chlorophytum comosum Variegatum, commonly known as the Spider Plant, is a tender, herbaceous perennial grown for its lush and variegated foliage. It features short, bright green leaves with a cream margin as it grows to 20 cm tall and 30 cm wide. Chlorophytum comosum Variegatum is commonly grown indoors in a container though it can be grown outdoors in frost-free areas. In these situations, it is often included in borders, planted around outdoor living areas, mass planted as a groundcover, or planted alongside a path.
