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Shrub

Shrub

A shrub or bush is a small- to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple stems and shorter height, less than 6 m-10 m (20 ft–33 ft) tall.[1][2] Small shrubs, less than 2 m (6.6 ft) tall are sometimes termed subshrubs.[3]

Definition

Shrubs are perennial woody plants, and therefore have persistent woody stems above ground (compare with herbaceous plants).[2] Usually shrubs are distinguished from trees by their height and multiple stems. Some shrubs are deciduous (e.g. hawthorn) and others evergreen (e.g. holly).[2] Ancient Greek philosopher Theophrastus divided the plant world into trees, shrubs and herbs.[4]

Height

Some definitions state that a shrub is less than 6 m and tree is over 6 m. Others use 10 m as the cut off point.[2] Many species of tree may not reach this mature height because of less than ideal growing conditions, and resemble a shrub sized plant.

However such species have the potential to grow taller under the ideal growing conditions for that plant.

Small, low shrubs, generally less than 2 m (6.6 ft) tall, such as lavender, periwinkle and most small garden varieties of rose, are often termed subshrubs.[3]

Multiple stems

Most definitions characterize shrubs as possessing multiple stems with no main trunk.[2] This is because the stems have branched below ground level.

There are exceptions to this, with some shrubs having main trunks, but these tend to be very short and divide into multiple stems close to ground level.

Many trees can grow in multiple stemmed forms also, such as oak or ash.[2]

Use in parks

An area of cultivated shrubs in a park or a garden is known as a shrubbery.[5] When clipped as topiary, suitable species or varieties of shrubs develop dense foliage and many small leafy branches growing close together.[6] Many shrubs respond well to renewal pruning, in which hard cutting back to a "stool" results in long new stems known as "canes". Other shrubs respond better to selective pruning to reveal their structure and character.

Shrubs in common garden practice are generally considered broad-leaved plants, though some smaller conifers such as mountain pine and common juniper are also shrubby in structure. Species that grow into a shrubby habit may be either deciduous or evergreen.[7]

Botanical structure

In botany and ecology, a shrub is more specifically used to describe the particular physical structural or plant life-form of woody plants which are less than 8 metres (26 ft) high and usually have many stems arising at or near the base. For example, a descriptive system widely adopted in Australia is based on structural characteristics based on life-form, plus the height and amount of foliage cover of the tallest layer or dominant species.[8]

For shrubs 2–8 metres (6.6–26.2 ft) high the following structural forms are categorized:

  • dense foliage cover (70–100%) — closed-shrub

  • mid-dense foliage cover (30–70%) — open-shrub

  • sparse foliage cover (10–30%) — tall shrubland

  • very sparse foliage cover (<10%) — tall open shrubland

For shrubs less than 2 metres (6.6 ft) high the following structural forms are categorized:

  • dense foliage cover (70–100%) — heath or closed low shrubland—(North America)

  • mid-dense foliage cover (30–70%) — open-heath or mid-dense low shrubland—(North America)

  • sparse foliage cover (10–30%) — low shrubland

  • very sparse foliage cover (<10%) — low open shrubland

List of shrubs (bushes)

Those marked with * can also develop into tree form.

A

  • Abelia

  • Acer

  • Actinidia

  • Aloe

  • Aralia (Angelica Tree, Hercules' Club) *

  • Arctostaphylos (Bearberry, Manzanita) *

  • Aronia

  • Artemisia (Sagebrush)

  • Aucuba

B

  • Berberis

  • Bougainvillea

  • Brugmansia

  • Buddleja

  • Buxus

C

  • Calia

  • Callicarpa

  • Callistemon

  • Calluna

  • Calycanthus

  • Camellia (Camellia, Tea) *

  • Caragana

  • Carpenteria

  • Caryopteris

  • Cassiope

  • Ceanothus

  • Celastrus

  • Ceratostigma

  • Cercocarpus

  • Chaenomeles

  • Chamaebatiaria

  • Chamaedaphne

  • Chimonanthus

  • Chionanthus

  • Choisya

  • Cistus

  • Clerodendrum

  • Clethra

  • Clianthus

  • Colletia

  • Colutea

  • Comptonia

  • Cornus

  • Corylopsis

  • Cotinus

  • Cotoneaster

  • Cowania (Cliffrose)

  • Crataegus

  • Crinodendron

  • Cytisus and allied genera (Broom) *

D

  • Daboecia (Heath)

  • Danae

  • Daphne

  • Decaisnea

  • Dasiphora

  • Dendromecon

  • Desfontainea

  • Deutzia

  • Diervilla

  • Dipelta

  • Dirca

  • Dracaena

  • Drimys (Winter's Bark) *

  • Dryas

E

  • Edgeworthia

  • Elaeagnus (Elaeagnus) *

  • Embothrium (Chilean Firebush) *

  • Empetrum (Crowberry)

  • Enkianthus

  • Ephedra

  • Epigaea (Trailing Arbutus)

  • Erica (Heath)

  • Eriobotrya

  • Escallonia

  • Eucryphia

  • Euonymus

  • Exochorda

F

  • Fabiana

  • Fallugia

  • Fatsia

  • Forsythia

  • Fothergilla

  • Franklinia

  • Fremontodendron

  • Fuchsia

G

  • Garrya

  • Gaultheria (Salal)

  • Gaylussacia (Huckleberry)

  • Genista (Broom) *

  • Gordonia (Loblolly-bay) *

  • Grevillea

  • Griselinia

H

  • Hakea

  • Halesia (Silverbell) *

  • Halimium

  • Hamamelis

  • Hebe

  • Hedera

  • Helianthemum

  • Hibiscus

  • Hippophae

  • Hoheria

  • Holodiscus (Creambush)

  • Hudsonia

  • Hydrangea

  • Hypericum (Rose of Sharon)

  • Hyssopus

I

  • Ilex (Holly) *

  • Illicium (Star Anise) *

  • Indigofera

  • Itea (Sweetspire)

J

  • Jamesia

  • Jasminum

  • Juniperus

K

  • Kalmia

  • Kerria

  • Kolkwitzia (Beauty-bush)

L

  • Lagerstroemia

  • Lapageria

  • Lantana

  • Lavandula

  • Lavatera

  • Ledum

  • Leitneria

  • Lespedeza

  • Leptospermum

  • Leucothoe

  • Leycesteria

  • Ligustrum

  • Lindera

  • Linnaea

  • Lonicera

  • Lupinus

  • Lycium

M

  • Magnolia

  • Mahonia

  • Malpighia (Acerola)

  • Menispermum

  • Menziesia

  • Mespilus (Medlar) *

  • Microcachrys

  • Myrica

  • Myricaria (Myricaria)

  • Myrtus

N

  • Neillia

  • Nerium

O

  • Olearia

  • Osmanthus

P

  • Pachysandra

  • Paeonia

  • Perovskia (Russian Sage)

  • Persoonia

  • Philadelphus

  • Phlomis (Jerusalem Sage)

  • Photinia

  • Physocarpus

  • Pieris

  • Pistacia (Pistachio, Mastic) *

  • Pittosporum

  • Plumbago

  • Polygala

  • Poncirus

  • Prunus

  • Purshia (Antelope Bush)

  • Pyracantha

Q

  • Quassia

  • Quercus

  • Quillaja (Quillay)

  • Quintinia (Tawheowheo) *

R

  • Rhamnus

  • Rhododendron (Rhododendron, Azalea) *

  • Rhus

  • Ribes

  • Romneya

  • Rosa

  • Rosmarinus (Rosemary)

  • Rubus (Bramble)

  • Ruta (Rue)

S

  • Sabia *

  • Salix (Willow) *

  • Salvia

  • Sambucus

  • Santolina

  • Sapindus

  • Senecio

  • Simmondsia

  • Skimmia

  • Smilax

  • Sophora (Kowhai) *

  • Sorbaria

  • Spartium

  • Spiraea

  • Staphylea

  • Stephanandra

  • Styrax

  • Symphoricarpos

  • Syringa (Lilac) *

T

  • Tamarix

  • Taxus

  • Telopea

  • Thuja

  • Thymelaea

  • Thymus

  • Trochodendron

U

  • Ulex

  • Ulmus pumila celer (Turkestan elm – Wonder Hedge)

  • Ungnadia

V

  • Vaccinium (Bilberry, Blueberry, Cranberry)

  • Verbena

  • Viburnum

  • Vinca

  • Viscum (Mistletoe)

W

  • Weigela

X

  • Xanthoceras

  • Xanthorhiza

  • Xylosma

Y

  • Yucca (Yucca, Joshua tree) *

Z

  • Zanthoxylum

  • Zauschneria

  • Zenobia

  • Ziziphus

References

[1]
Citation Linkbooks.google.comAnna Lawrence; William Hawthorne (2006). Plant Identification: Creating User-friendly Field Guides for Biodiversity Management. Routledge. pp. 138-. ISBN 978-1-84407-079-4.
Sep 26, 2019, 6:24 PM
[2]
Citation Linkwww.worldcat.orgAllaby, Michael (2019). A dictionary of plant sciences. Oxford Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780198833338.
Sep 26, 2019, 6:24 PM
[3]
Citation Linkbooks.google.comPeggy Fischer (1990). Essential shrubs: the 100 best for design and cultivation. Friedman/Fairfax Publishers. pp. 9–. ISBN 978-1-56799-319-6. ... Examples of subshrubs include candytuft, lavender, and rosemary. These broad definitions are ...
Sep 26, 2019, 6:24 PM
[4]
Citation Linkbooks.google.comBremness, Lesley. The complete book of herbs. Viking Studio Books. p. 8. ISBN 9780140238020.
Sep 26, 2019, 6:24 PM
[5]
Citation Linkbooks.google.comPatrick Whitefield (2002). How to Make a Forest Garden. Permanent Publications. pp. 113–. ISBN 978-1-85623-008-7.
Sep 26, 2019, 6:24 PM
[6]
Citation Linkbooks.google.co.ukVarkulevicius, Jane (17 May 2010). "Pruning for Flowers and Fruit". Csiro Publishing. Retrieved 19 December 2017 – via Google Books.
Sep 26, 2019, 6:24 PM
[7]
Citation Linkbooks.google.co.ukElliott, Franklin Reuben (1 November 2008). "Popular Deciduous and Evergreen Trees and Shrubs". Applewood Books. Retrieved 19 December 2017 – via Google Books.
Sep 26, 2019, 6:24 PM
[8]
Citation Linkopenlibrary.orgCostermans, L. F. (1993) Native trees and shrubs of South-Eastern Australia. rev. ed. ISBN 0-947116-76-1
Sep 26, 2019, 6:24 PM
[16]
Citation Linken.wikipedia.orgThe original version of this page is from Wikipedia, you can edit the page right here on Everipedia.Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.Additional terms may apply.See everipedia.org/everipedia-termsfor further details.Images/media credited individually (click the icon for details).
Sep 26, 2019, 6:24 PM