As promised, I said I would post a list of plants I find interesting in the winter. This list is by no means inclusive. I am including mainly plants I have personally grown or seen. If you have a favorite plant not listed here just let me know and I will share it with others. This is my last posting on winter gardening.
Trees for Winter Interest
Birches, Crepe Myrtles, Japanese Maples, Sycamores, Spruces, Cedars, Dogwoods, Hackberries, and Arborvitaes
Shrubs for Winter Interest
Nandina, Dogwoods (Yellow and Red Twigs), Hydrangeas, Camelias, Silverberries, Boxwoods, Witch Hazels, Winter Daphne, Winter Hazel, Cleyera, Euonymus, and Quinces, Sumacs
Ornamental Grasses
Miscanthus and Penisetums
Perennials
Hellebores, Arum Italicum, Pulmonaria, Coral Bells, Artemesia 'Powis Castle', Lambs Ears, Brown Eyes, Coneflowers, Eupatoriums, Sedums, Candytuft
Vines
Sweet Autumn Clematis, Clematis, Jessamine, Wisteria, Silver Lace, Climbing roses
What type of plants are your favorite ones for winter interest? Post them in the comment section and share with others. Happy winter gardening!
in the garden....
That's a good list! I'm glad you included the sycamores. The bark on a older one is really interesting. For small shrubs I like the Bird's Nest Spruce and my favorite is the Red Twig Dogwood. When it has lost its leaves the bright red bark shines out! Don't forget about Dwarf English laurels, they have very nice evergreen foliage. Another tree is the hemlock. It has very interesting feathery foliage that looks great year round!
ReplyDeleteCompliments to my Teacher! :)
ReplyDeleteAh, so many plants so little yard for all that I want to try.
Very good suggestions for winter interest. I never thought of the bird's nest spruce or hemlocks but they would be great too.
ReplyDeleteBeen missing you Ginger. I hope all is fine. My computer is acting up so all is not fine with me-probably should go garden and get some endorphins flowing. Most always works to get me happy but now the rain has finally arrived. Maybe tomorrow.
Tina
ReplyDeleteHubby and I caught that nasty Flu bug & missed most of December and the New Year too. Christmas day friends brought us groceries and decongestent meds!
I was out in the yard today because of the wind. The dogs and I were digging holes and picking up tree branches. We were having a good time until the rain hit. 13 pounder, Franky, jumped into a mud puddle. He knows how to have fun. :)
I wish I could plant a dozen bushes in my neighbor's yard so I wouldn't have to see their many "treasure piles". I want to find a vine besides ivy that will not disappear during the cold months. What do you think?
Hi Ginger,
ReplyDeleteI am sorry to hear you and hubby have been sick and very happy to hear you are better since you were able to pick up those pesky branches in the yard. Franky is a silly dog! But definitely having fun.
As for the vine in winter, there are a few I can think of. One of my favorites is Sweet Autumn Clematis. This vine is semi evergreen so it might not work for you, but it has so many stems and gets so large without overpowering that it is really a great vine any season. It blooms with small white flowers Sep-Nov timeframe. The flowers are ever so fragrant and all you will see is the white flowers since they are so profuse. I have two and they sometimes self seed so that is a bonus. In my garden they even grow in the winter during periods like now.
The other vine which is semi evergreen as well, is a Carolina Jessamine. This vine blooms in the spring with fragrant yellow flowers. It grows very much like the sweet autumn clematis and is an easy care vine which is vigorous. I just planted mine last year so I will wait on judgment with the growth rate. I can tell you the sweet autumn is vigorous and you need not start with a large vine as it quickly grows to 20+ feet, but is a light thin stem so it is not like wisteria. The jessamine is supposed to grow to 20+ feet too. I like planting a variety for year round interest. You might look into these two vines. Other than honeysuckly I can't think of evergreen vines. If you want to hide the neighbors treasures, honeysuckle would definitely do it, but this vine can be invasive so you must be aware of this. On a fence is usually an ok place for it. I do let it grow in some areas as do many people.
Another evergreen vine is Euonymus fortunei 'Coloratus'. Better known as wintercreeper. This is a vigorous vine or shrub. You have to make sure you get the vine form. I do not personally grow it but have seen it grow, it is very hardy, likes sun and will climb just like ivy. The leaves turn purple in the fall and winter.
As soon as I get my computer back up I will post some pictures of the first two vines I described so you can see what they look like since they are not completely evergreen. They do not disappear but are naturally not as full as during the growing season. The honeysuckle and wintercreeper would give more color in the winter. I am thinking you might lean toward the wintercreeper since it is evergreen.