Choosing appropriate plantings for a minimalist landscaping design can be difficult. The contemporary style embraces straight, clean lines with pops of color rather than dynamic bounties of natural coloring. The trick to incorporating minimalism into your landscaping design with plantings in Westchester County, NY is to carefully consider your options and incorporate an elegant use of color, greenery, and more structured aesthetic elements. The minimalist design style is focused on maintaining symmetry and size, both of which are easier when you choose evergreen shrubs rather than robust, flowering options. Also, be sure to choose hardy plants with the help of your contractor. Your contractor will be able to steer you in the direction of plants that will be able survive New York winters and require less maintenance overall.

Sargent’s Juniper (Juniperus chinensis 'Sargentii')

This evergreen shrub offers an ideal canvas for Bonsai-style pruning. With a bit of attention, this plant is a perfect addition to your minimalist landscape. The Sargent’s juniper can be formally shaped with regular pruning, however it requires little maintenance and on its own forms a tight knit, low lying groundcover. This narrow leaf evergreen will grow densely in a short period of time and spread widely if allowed to do so.

Little Leaf Boxwood (Buxus microphylla)

Another shrub that can be easily shaped into a minimalist dreamscape, the little leaf boxwood is an evergreen commonly seen in landscape design. The little leaf boxwood is so named because of its small, broad leaves. Allow your landscaper to shape this shrub into a symmetrical design. A limited number of these shrubs, trimmed for symmetry, is perfect for creating rhythm within a landscape. With the clean, straight lines offered by a pruning, the little leaf boxwood will fit perfectly within your minimalist landscape.

Creeping Juniper (Juniperus horizontalis)

As well as being a minimalist planting that requires little, if any, maintenance, the creeping juniper provides a solution to soil loss on steep slopes. This shrub will not reach above a foot high, but will grow quickly across any hill-side where erosion is a concern. As for contemporary aesthetics, choosing to plant this shrub by itself, away from other plantings, could very well fall within your contemporary design. Consider adding some inorganic elements to provide geometric structure in order to make the shrubbery work with your design.

Nordic Inkberry (Ilex glabra 'Chamzin')

Another evergreen that calls to pruning for clean lines and contemporary aesthetics, Nordic inkberry is a hardy plant that will thrive in the NY region while providing dense, useable foliage. The Nordic inkberry grows between 3-4’ high and 3-4’ across, providing plentiful material for a landscaping artist to create minimalist appropriate shrubbery.

6 Shrubs for Minimalist Westchester County, NY Landscaping

Bayberry (Myrica pensylvanica)

This shrub is an option that has a greater height than those discussed thus far. Able to reach heights of 5’+, this shrub does, however, have a dense, evergreen display that will seem right at home in your minimalist landscape given adequate maintenance and pruning are provided.

Wilson Rhododendron (Rhododendron x laetevirens)

For another dense shrub option, Wilson Rhododendron won’t require as much pruning and maintenance because of its compact growth pattern. While hardy even during cold winters, this shrub does flower with light or pink petals.