When selecting shrubs, try to include a range of varieties so that they provide a continuous display of foliage, flowers, berries or other seasonal features.

Spring

New leaves and spring flowers can bring early colour and vitality into the garden.

Examples include:

• Burkwood's daphne (Daphne × burkwoodii 'G.K. Argles') - fragrant, white and pink flower clusters in late spring.
• Halberd-leaved willow (Salix hastata 'Wehrhahnii') - fat silver grey early spring catkins borne on deep purple stems. The catkins turn yellow as they mature.

Summer

There is a tremendous choice of summer flowering shrubs available - try to combine them so that they form a continuous display.

Examples include:

• Shrubby cinquefoil (Potentilla fruticosa 'Elizabeth') - clear yellow flowers that last from June until October.
• Lilac (Syringa pubescens subsp. microphylla 'Superba') - pretty and highly fragrant lilac pink flowers form in May or June. There is often a repeat performance in September and sometimes even a few flowers in between!

Autumn

Deciduous shrubs often provide the major interest at this time of year with their colourful foliage providing a stunning display. Colour from fruits and berries is also effective.

Examples include:

• Smoke Bush (Cotinus coggygria - various cvs) - yellow, red, or purple foliage.
• Cotoneaster (Cotoneaster × watereri 'Cornubia') - clusters of bright red fruits in autumn.
• Firethorn (Pyracantha 'Golden Charmer') - produces a mass of orange coloured fruits in autumn.
• Winged spindle (Euonymus alatus) - crimson-pink autumn coloured foliage with red-purple lobed fruits.

Winter

Shrubs can be an essential part of winter planting, providing interest with evergreen foliage, ornamental stems or even winter flowers.

Examples include:

• Osier dogwood (Cornus stolonifera 'Flaviramea') produces a vivid, lime-green thicket of stems in winter.
• Bodnant viburnum (Viburnum × bodnantense) - winter flowering shrub producing large heads of fragrant pink flowers during warm periods.
• Japanese mahonia (Mahonia japonica) - yellow sprays of flowers that appear at the tops of stems during winter, with a delightful lily-of-the-valley fragrance.
• Witch hazel (Hamamelis × intermedia 'Diane') - winter production of spidery red-orange flowers (reddish purple at their base).