How Tall Is a Burning Bush?

By Annelise Ford, eHow Contributor

updated: March 26, 2011

Learning the growth habits of landscape shrubs is an important step to the planning process.

The Burning Bush is a highly ornamental shrub that features mottled bark and attractive winged fruits or showy foliage and white berries, varieties of euonymus can climb as vines or form small trees or low-mounding shrubs. It is a popular choice for landscape planning as many of the varieties have brilliant fall color that becomes a centerpiece in the late season garden.

1. Euonymus alatus Compactus

   • Annual pruning may be necessary to keep shrubs at desired sizes.

     Slow growing, Compactus can eventually reach a considerable size even though smaller than the species. Old shrubs that are never pruned can reach 8 feet in width and nearly as tall. Fortunately, they respond well to shearing and shaping, and can be used either as loose hedges with pruning, or as natural specimens allowed to take their full natural broad layered shape.

   Euonymus alatus Rudy Haag

   • Brilliant color is a must have in any fall garden.

     Rudy Haag Burning Bush has an excellent habit and form making this a popular selection. This variety is quite compact with average heights of 4 to 5 feet with equal widths. The fall color can be spectacular. The small, yellowish green flowers that appear in May are not showy much like the small fruits that appear in the fall. This very compact, slow growing shrub performs best in full sun.

   Euonymus alatus Nordine Strain

   • Consulting a local nursery or landscape professional is a good place to start in deciding which shrubs suit your landscape needs.

     The compact selection called Nordine, was introduced because of the abundance of fruits it produces. Nordine is another example of a more compact version with heights and widths much like the Rudy Haag selection. This variety may be harder to find locally and may need to be ordered through a plant nursery.

   Euonymus alatus Phellomanus

   • Euonymus phellomanus has small inconspicuous flowers in spring, followed by vivid lipstick-pink fruit in autumn, which split to reveal conspicuous orange seeds. This specimen will reach heights of 8 feet with widths at 6 feet. Another notable feature is the corky, winged stems which are particularly eye-catching once the leaves fall in the winter.