Looking for a small evergreen bush

I'm putting a fairly large bed in the front yard and am looking for an evergreen bush that's not a cypress, juniper, or anything with needle leaves.

I want it to stay under 3', without too much of a spread, and have broad leaves. Flowering would be nice.

Does such a thing exist?

You didn't mention what light requirements your looking for.
You can do a search like this....
http://www.waysidegardens.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/StoreCatalogDisplay?storeId=10151&catalogId=10151&langId=-1&mainPage=gatepage&gate=WGCompactShrubs&scChannel=homeShrubs

Not that I'm recommending Wayside Gardens, but if you see something here you like you can look locally or from another company.

The Japanese holly, ilex crenata, is an evergreen that grows to a maximum height of about three feet or less. I have several of them that are about twelve years old. The plant does produce tiny flowers, less than a quarter in in diameter. The leaves are very small and have no spines. There many cultivars and several are shown in Dave's plant files with photos.

Oh, sorry! It's going to be FULLLLL (dawn to sunrise) sun & amended, heavy clay soil.

Thanks for those tips so far! :))

If you can do without the flowers, boxwood is hard to beat. Otherwise, calycanthas is nice, but I doubt it would be evergreen for your zone. I will look through my shrub books and see if there are any that jump out at me that meet your requirements. I'm sure there several that would work.

I'd appreciate it!!

You know, Gardenia Fragrant Pathways might work. It's a little low, and I'm not sure whether it could take the blasting sun, but otherwise it looks good. http://www.waysidegardens.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/StoreCatalogDisplay?storeId=10151&catalogId=10151&langId=-1&mainPage=LGprodview&ItemId=46869&PrevMainPage=gatepage&scChannel=Gate%20WGEvergreenShrubs&SearchText=p16.v233;p10.v63&OfferCode=VH3

I'm not familiar with 'Fragrant Pathways' but 'Kleim's Hardy' and 'Frostproof' Gardenias perform pretty well in full sun. Also, the dwarf forms of Indian Hawthorn (Rhaphiolepis) and Pittosporum are very popular for your area.

Thanks for that info on the gardenias! Most of the others look to be too tall. I have moderate COPD & asthma (currently 45% lung function) and am trying to build my gardens knowing I won't be able to put a lot of work into them in the future, so future size is critical to me. ;)

I was just looking at the Japanese Holly and it looks like there's one that would work, also - http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showimage/118294/ - that's the perfect size for that bed!! I want them there when the summer plants die for the season.

I'm going to be putting clumps of season-long blooming perennials in between the bushes (Dahlias, Asiatic Lilies, DayLilies, Hibiscus, ++) as well as a Lemon Tree in the corner of the bed, near the front deck landing (so we can reach from the deck to pick lemons. :)) Hope it all comes together as I'm envisioning it.

Any more ideas? Thank you to all of you!

Just make sure if you do get a Japanese Holly that it is a dwarf like 'Soft Touch' (my favorite) or 'Helleri'. Most other Ilex crenatas can grow at least 5 feet tall even the cultivar 'Compact', ironically.