8 Plant for Winter Interest to your Garden.
Do you look around in the winter and feel like your garden is missing something? Do you see another garden that looks wonderful in the winter and wish yours did? Below are some plants to consider when you are snuggled in front of the fireplace with a hot drink and perusing the new garden catalogs this winter. All plants will grow here in Virginia
One of the most dramatic looks in winter can be created with grasses.
Left with their seedheads on thru winter, grasses will convey movement, color and texture in the garden. The seedheads also provide food and protection for the birds. The Miscanthus family offers a wonderful assortment to choose from, including the one shown.
Another family that offers an abundance of choices is Helleborus.
These wonderful perennials come in a wide range of colors, from white to yellow, pale rose to deep burgundy and even green! Some even have freckles! To learn more about these wonderful plants check out my post on them.
With leathery leaves appearing after they bloom, the bloom period ranges from Christmas to Easter, depending on the variety planted.
Several varieties will naturalize quite easily, making them a great plant to place under shade trees where grass won’t grow. To learn more about each of the 20 some species of Helleborus, you can hop over to plant lover Tony Avent’s website Plants Delight Nursery here. Hellebores need partial to full shade and well-drained soil.
Winter Aconites and Snowdrops are two bulbs whose sweet blooms will pop up thru the snow, adding a vibrant color to your garden.
Winter aconites are a tuber, 2-3” tall, and do spread. They will bloom in late winter – letting you know that spring is on its way.
Snowdrops or Galanthus is a small bulb that will bloom around the same time as Winter aconites and together they make a lovely combination in the garden.
Snowdrops can be a single flower or double, white with or without green markings. It’s a small, slender plant although there is a variety that is quite large, Galanthus elwesii, which will reach 8”. Elwesii dates back to 1846 and it’s a great variety for naturalizing in the garden.
Warning: plant and bulbs are poisonous to humans if ingested in large quantities.
Another fun perennial to plant for winter color is Bergenia pupurascens.
The plant has a clump forming growth habit and is good for bed edges or ground cover in shady areas. They reach a height of 12-18” and spread is about twice that.
Cold weather turns Bergenia’s leaves to a rich deep burgundy.
For best color in the winter pick a variety like “Winter Fairy-tale” or “Winters Glow” They need partial to full shade and well-drained soil.
The plant has a clump forming growth habit and is good for bed edges or ground cover in shady areas. They reach a height of 12-18” and spread is about twice that.
Are you thinking you need some new trees or shrubs in your garden?
Why not add one of these that will give you winter interest as a bonus?
Witch hazel is, in my humble opinion, sorely underused.
Blooming in mid to late winter on warm days, it provides a much-needed bit of cheer.
The flowers will curl up when the temps drop again, which lets you know before you go out just how cold it might be!
A small tree wide tree, Witch hazels grow to be about 12’ tall and 15’ wide. I would place it where it can show off its fringe-like flowers. You can find flowers in white, pink, red and yellow.
Yellow or red twig dogwoods can add a bright unexpected color to your beds.
As the best color is shown on new growth, make sure to prune about one-third of the old growth in the spring.
Another small shrub/tree, depending on how you prune them, these dogwoods reach about 5-8’ tall. Full sun is best for the brightest color wood.
Hollies are another great family of evergreen shrubs and trees for winter interest.
A perennial favorite of gardeners is Ilex verticillata. To get those amazing red berries in the winter, make sure to plant a male holly for every 5-7 female hollies. Full sun for these beauties.
Some of the more outstanding varieties of verticillata are ‘Berry Holly’ or ‘Berry Holly Gold’, ‘Little Goblin Orange’ or ‘Berry Poppins’. Ilex need full sun and moist soil.
And one last tree, Southern Magnolias.
For me, to have a Southern Magnolia tree to prune in the winter for my mantelpiece is a joy. And those glossy leaves! The picture they make with snow all around and the sun shining on their leaves.
Now, you might not live to see it in all its glory, but what a way to leave your mark in the garden for those who come after. This is one of those trees that you buy as big as you can afford and pay someone to plant it properly!
That’s all I have for now. What plants do you have in your garden for winter interest? Which one above intrigues you? Let me know in the comments below.
