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Winter Interest in the Garden
by Jennifer Duffield White for
www.Greenprofit.com
Traditionally, most of us view autumn clean-up and maintenance
activities as a “putting the garden to rest” ritual. Snow falls, and we
wait inside for spring to arrive before we begin to admire our gardens
once again.
Yet, the truth is that you may be missing out on a rewarding season if
you view your garden this way. As Vincent Simeone, author of Wonder of
the Winter Landscape, writes, “Unlike any other season of the year,
winter defines the essence of a garden. It strips away the layers to
reveal the garden’s inner soul. Truthfully, there is nothing more
enchanting than a garden in winter.”
The great thing is that you don’t have to pick up a shovel or pull a
weed during this season. You just need to plan your garden with a vision
for how trees, shrubs, perennials, and grasses will look during the
winter. Do your planting during the spring, summer, and fall months;
then sit back and enjoy your landscape—from a window or wrapped in a
warm coat—when the temperatures plummet.
As you approach this idea of winter interest in the garden, it’s
important to hold two key concepts in mind: First, you’ll have to
envision how a plant, tree, or shrub might look in the winter—under a
blanket of snow, a coating of ice, with dead blades of grass, or bare of
leaves. Second, be patient. You may buy a cotoneaster at the garden
center in June; enjoy its delicate flowers in spring and summer, and
patiently await the display of berries in fall and winter.
Vision
While we buy bedding plants and many perennials for their bold, bright
colors, planning for winter interest requires another viewpoint. Not
only will your winter light levels be softer, but the visual attraction
of a winter garden has more to do with shapes, textures, and contrasting
colors.
Instead of looking for color, you’ll be searching for combinations of
bark, fruit, branches and foliage. (That being said, there are a few
plants out there that offer the unexpected pleasure of flowers in
winter.)
With deciduous trees and shrubs, which lose their leaves in the winter,
think about the actual structure of those plants, sans leaves. Think
about branching, bark, texture, and possible fruit. For evergreens,
you’ll want to pay attention to texture, foliage and shape. Perennials
and ornamental grasses may offer a variety of visual impacts, from tufts
of tall golden grass to spindly stalks with seed pods.
As you consider which plants to add to your garden, don’t forget to look
at every season of their life cycle, as well, so the plant’s attributes
match your garden style spring, summer, fall, and winter. Lastly, don’t
forget the well-established trees, shrubs and perennials that may
already by part of your garden. Everything from cedar bark to the pine
cones of a spruce tree may take on a new meaning now.
Plants to go by
The doors are wide open when it comes to plant selection. You can choose
from evergreen shrubs or trees, deciduous shrubs or trees, perennials or
ornamental grasses (some of which may be perennials, others of which may
only be annuals, but they’ll still give your garden good interest during
the winter months). Breaking it down further, you can specifically
search for trees with interesting bark, for ones with colored stems, for
berry-producers, seed-pod producers, or winter-flowering plants.
Make sure that your garden offers the right conditions—from soil, to
sun/shade to your Hardiness Zone (which may vary by species and
variety).
Cherry laurel (Prunus laurocerasus). White flowers in the spring. In the
winter, it has dark, glossy, evergreen leaves. Does best in shade and
moist, acidic soil. Hardy Zones 6-8.
Feather reed grass (Calamogrostis x acutiflora ‘Karl Foerster’).
Ornamental grass that grows 4 to 6 ft. tall and has golden featherly
flowers in the fall. Provide sun to light shade. Hardy Zones 5-9.
Fountain grass (Pennisetum alopecuroides). Ornamental grass that has
pinkish, fuzzy, bottlebrush-like flowers in the fall. It’s fountain-like
mounded foliage tuns to a wheat color in the fall. Needs sun to part
shade. Hardy Zones 4-9.
Fragrant wintersweet (Chimonanthus praecox). A winter-blooming shrub
that has small flowers as early as December. Leaves are dark green in
summer and turn greenish yellow in the fall. Adaptable to various
growing conditions. Hardy Zones 6-9.
Holly (Ilex species). A broadleaf evergreen shrub that peaks in the late
autumn when its red berries ripen. Tolerant of various soil/light
conditions. There are several different types of holly to choose from,
including English, inkberry, blue, American, longstalk and winterberry.
Their hardiness ranges from a protected Zone 4 to Zone 10.
Japanese maple (Acer palmatum). These deciduous trees include varieties
such as the coral bark maple, which has bright red stems (Zones 5-8).
The cutleaf Japanese maples are known for their twisted, sprawling
branches, which create an artsy look in the winter.
Japanese stewartia (Stewartia pseudocamellia) Has white flowers in the
early summer. In the fall, leaves turn crimson red and the
bark—multicolored and shaggy—becomes more noticeable. Full sun or
partial shade, with acidic soil. Hardy Zones 4-7.
Miscanthus species. Ornamental grass that comes in a variety of heights
and colors. Can reach 3 to 7 ft., depending on variety. In the fall, it
flowers with plumes or tassles and foliage turns tannish red, white, or
silver. Hardy Zones 5-9.
Mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia). Shrub. Flowers in the spring. Dark,
evergreen leaves. Tolerates a wide range of growing conditions. Hardy
Zones 4-9.
Pieris (Pieris japonica). A popular flowering shrub that blooms in early
spring. But you’ll see flower buds develop in winter and dangle down.
Dark, evergreen leaves. Grow in moist, acidic soil and partial shade.
Hardy Zones 5-7.
Pussy willow (Salix species). This shrub has soft, fuzzy flowers called
catkins in late winter. Prefers moist soil and full or part sun. Hardy
Zones 4-8.
Red switch grass (Panicum virgatum). Ornamental grass that forms a 3-ft.
high upright clump. Has finely textured reddish sprays in the fall, and
its leaves turn red in the fall, also. Full sun. Hardy Zones 3-9,
Rhododendrons. Shrub. Flowers in the spring and summer. In the winter,
they offer lush, evergreen foliage. Need moist, acidic soil and partial
shade. Hardy Zones 4-7.
Spring heath (Erica carnea). Groundcover that flowers in the late winter
or early spring. Foliage is finely textured. Needs moist, acidic soil
and sun or partial shade. Hardy Zones 5-7.
Tufted sedge (Carex elata). An ornamental grass that typically grows 2
ft. tall and provides winter interest. Prefers shade/part shade. Hardy
Zones 5-8.
Viburnum (Viburnum species). Shrub. Flowers in spring, and has
dark-green foliage through the summer. In the fall, leaves turn deep
red, yellow or maroon, and bright-red berries develop. Linden viburnum
grows in Zones 5-7; American cranberrybush types in Zones 2-7; European
cranberrybush types in Zones 3-8.
Witch hazel (Hamamelis species). While common witch hazel blooms in the
fall, the Asian species and hybrids bloom in the winter . The dark-green
leaves turn to yellow, orange and red in the fall, and witch hazel
typically has a very wide habit. Hardy Zones 5-8.
Winter honeysuckle (Lonicera fragrantissima). This medium-sized shrub
blooms in late winter and early spring with white flowers noted for
their fragrance. Tolerates a wide range of growing conditions and
prefers full sun or partial shade. Leaves will fall in unusually cold
winters but most of the foliage usually stays throughout the winter.
Hardy Zones 4-8.
Winter jasmine (Jasminum nudiflorum). A low-growing winter-blooming
shrub that has yellow flowers from mid to late winter into early spring.
Sports small, green leaves from spring until fall and has a cascading
habit. Adaptable to a range of growing conditions. Hardy Zones 6-10.
Special thanks to Vincent A. Simeone, author of Wonders of the Winter
Landscape (available from
www.ballbookshelf.com Fall 2005)
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