Rhododendron?

Nancy, do you know of any rhodies that have an arching branch habit like weigela? I don't, but I am no rhodie expert! I am also looking at abelia - it is probably not fully evergreen in my zone but it sounds as though the stems provide a fair amount of winter interest.

Smivies, that leucothoe is lovely! Unfortunately the spot I am considering is full sun so I don't know if the leucothoe would thrive, but I have another area where it just might do.

Not known for their flowers, usually, but some of the evergreen Euonymus varieties have a somewhat weeping form and the variegated varieties look almost as if blooming sometimes.

Another that I thought of, if it's a sunny spot, is Ceanothus....they sometimes are quite weepy, but not sure of the varieties that do that...

Can you grow Camellias? Some of them arch/droop. Sorry I can't give names. I don't know much about them. I know my dad had a sasanqua which did.

Cotoneaster salicifolius arches but grows very large and I don't know if it's hardy where you are. Same applies to various weeping hollies.

Cotoneaster salicifolius 'Gnom' is dwarf-growing, as is C. salicifolius 'Repens'. With various otherwise often rather low cotoneasters being offered grafted onto the tops of straight trunks, to function as small weeping specimens in plantings. But anywhere it regularly gets above 70 degrees F. in May fire blight can be a problem for rose family trees and shrubs.

Abelia - other than the dwarf forms - tends to have a soft, arching habit. But is considered semi-evergreen (will lose some of its leaves - but not all - in winter).

The ceanothus Oly suggested will very likely be a poor choice for the east coast. It really wants our bone dry west coast summers. And would prefer a really mild winter as well.

That ceanothus is beautiful but if it likes dry summer and mild winter, this is not the right place for it. Cotoneaster could work, although the one I currently have in my yard loses all of its leaves in the winter. Perhaps abelia is the answer - I can deal with some leaf drop especially given that the branches of so many cultivars are pretty colors. I would like something that reaches 4-5 feet, so no need for a dwarf variety. Camellias are an interesting idea - I will have to look for cultivars that have an arching habit. I think zone 7 is borderline for older varieties but there are new ones that are hardy to z6.

I love this look, too! A main reason it occurs is because of the sheer weight of flowers and most evergreens are not the prodigious bloomers that many of the deciduous shrubs are. Personally, the solution I would invoke is to get rid of the evergreen requirement and open up the possible choices exponentially. I'm a believer that a main reason deciduous shrubs are not as much appreciated in winter as they otherwise could be, is because little attention is paid to cultivation of their form.

So far, the best option you have to fill your bill, I think, is Camellia, if that grows well where you are. While Abelia CAN have a nice form, it is fairly low down on my-exciting-flower-display scale. It's OK but not worth driving across town to see.

The advantage to abelia is that it has a very long bloom season - pretty much all summer - whereas camellias bloom only for a few weeks. It is also a big hummingbird draw and often develops bronzing or other winter color on the foliage.

With very few exceptions, deciduous shrubs generally have little winter form to speak of. The vast majority are just a collection of bare sticks with minimal sculptural form at all

I am wondering how well any evergreen will do in full sun in winter in your zone. Having never gardened anywhere warmer than zone 6, I don’t know the answer, but here evergreens do best with more winter shade.

Many broadleaf evergreens definitely prefer some winter shade. Conifers and certain others, like holly, don't mind sun.

And this is really more of a very warm zone 6, than zone 7. I've had too many people on the north side of Long Island Sound tell me 'we are NOT zone 7, we are NOT zone 7', to believe that real zone 7 goes far into Westchester if at all. In any case, a bit of caution isn't a bad idea.

I am actually at the extreme southern tip of Westchester county, so I do think we are truly zone 7, although you wouldn't know it to look at my Encore Azaleas after last year's very brutal winter. Holly does do just fine in full sun in winter here, but I really had something more floral in mind for this location, in addition to wanting the arching habit. I'm leaning toward abelia or weigela since they have a longer bloom season than bridal gown spirea, as well as more options for bloom color and leaf variation. I will definitely do some more camellia research, though!

we are truly zone 7, although you wouldn't know it to look at my Encore Azaleas after last year's very brutal winter

This is exactly what I mean. Last year's winter was, well, winter. Aside from that November snowstorm, which my SIL on Staten Island is still talking about, nothing exceptional happened.

Loropetalum may work....although it will probably defoliate in the winter, especially in windy areas. It does grow in zone 7A on the east coast. It is generally evergreen in zone 7B.

Ceanothus thrive here and our summers are definitely not dry. However, our winters are mild.

Hard to believe Loropetalum would be hardy where original poster is.

3-6 ft. is a small shrub, as far as it goes. With Cotoneaster salicifolius forms that are not smaller growing variants reaching about triple that height or more - this is what floral was referring to.

Sadly I think you are right Embothrium - I love loropetalum but I am fairly certain it will not survive here. I am thinking of trying a Purple Pixie in a sheltered location just to see if I can get lucky, but I wouldn't take the chance in the area I am talking about in this thread - it is quite exposed to sun, wind and everything in between. I will need something tough!

Mad_gallica, last winter was actually much harsher than what we typically experience here, with at least one record cold snap where we dipped down to 0 degrees. That is pretty unusual this close to the city.

Prunus laurocerasus 'Zabeliana' may give you enough of the 'arching' habit that you're looking for?

Perhaps Pieris?

I thought of Pieris, but for some reason my husband HATES this plant. He is typically easy to please when it comes to plants so I'm not sure why he dislikes this one so much - however, to keep the peace I have agreed not to plant any in conspicuous locations! :)

Maybe because when they look bad for whatever reason or winter burned, they look really bad??

Winter jasmine has evergreen stems https://www.southernliving.com/home-garden/gardens/winter-jasmine

also check Poet's Laurel.

Distylium 'Blue Cascade'.

Might get occasional cold damage, but usually comes back quickly in zone 7. You say 'title says it all', but you don't say how much room you have for this. Good drainage? This can get 8 to 10 feet wide with time -- like 10 years, but could be selectively pruned I suppose. It would likely do better with a bit of winter shade though.

Another fantastic weeping evergreen is Camellia chekiangoleosa, but it would need shade.

Agarista populifolia is another arching evergreen that can get big. While it can take some sun, it can bronze a bit in cold winters.

Dave, thanks for the Distylum recommendation - this is a lovely plant I had never heard of. We decided to go with Abelia Twist of Lime for the area I was asking about in this post (which will be an informal hedge) but I have a spot where one of the Distylums might work as a specimen plant.