GARDENER'S READING ROOM
The Art of Gardening

Color for the Cool Months

One of the great things about living in the Northwest is our year round greenery. Many states around the U.S. have to endure bleak winter landscapes, months of snow with little or no color. While we enjoy year round evergreens, some of us still long to have a broader palette of color in all the seasons, not just spring and summer. The great news is that we can! Sky carries a broad range of plant material to bring visual interest to your landscape in the cooler months.

Shrubs that are sure to brighten your border include the Red and Yellow Twig Dogwoods. During the summer these plants make a nice green shrubby backdrop for your flowering perennials. In the fall and winter months while those perennials are taking a break, the Dogwoods really shine with coral, burgundy, or bright yellow colored bark brought on by the cooler temperatures. Some willows are also stellar fall/winter performers. Enjoy the bright orange-red stems of the Flame Willow, or the spiral golden or gold-tipped-red of Golden Curls or Scarlet Curls. Branches from these also add extra zing to festive bouquets and arrangements. For a focal point, Coral Bark Maple is also ideal. Place it in the entry way, at the front of the house, or in a large container on a patio or deck.

Some “evergreens” defy that description with foliage that turns bronzy or purple in the colder weather. Nandinas range of foliage colors is strikingly set off by bright red clusters of berries that set in late summer and last through the winter. Leucothoe provides you with rich purple-tinted foliage as well as late winter blooms of small white flowers. Then there are the winter flowering Heaths (Erica). Heath foliage brightens your landscape with pale greens, soft yellows, to light shades of copper, bronze and gold. The contrasting flowers come in shades of white, pink, and magenta. Different varieties provide blooming periods that can start in October and go through to the following spring.

Stepping away from shrubs and trees, I also love to use grasses and sedges to bring visual interest to my garden. Many grasses are now available to fit almost any condition and location in your landscape. They not only bring movement to your garden swaying gracefully in the breeze, but they also shine in the fall and winter months with their light colored leaves and stalks bathed in winter sunlight. Some of the most striking images I have in my mind are of frosty sunlit mornings and my grasses standing like sentinels welcoming the morning. There are many evergreen grasses that add interest and color, such as Blue Fescue and Blue Oat grass. Sedges provide colors in the gold, green and bronzy tinges, while the dark blades of Black Mondo Grass are excellent accents in the front of the border or along walkways.

Finally, another consideration in bringing interest to a winter garden should include structural forms. They may not be a colorful addition like some of the suggestions discussed above, but they certainly add dimension to the garden landscape. When planting that border or entry way, try to think about what it will look like when the leaves are gone, the annuals removed or when it’s the only green thing left. Lace Leaf Japanese Maples make beautiful specimen trees in the entry or as a focal point in a border during the summer and fall, but they also develop into strong visual subjects as they mature. With their twisting and arching growth habit, over time they can become architectural additions during the winter months. In line with architectural elements, consider clipped topiary forms of Boxwood, Rosemary or other similar materials.

As you can see, there are many options and ideas available for winter interest in our gardens here in the Northwest. If you find some of these suggestions appealing or want help coming up with a solution for your particular space, why not stop by Sky Nursery? We will gladly help you come up with a solution that fits your needs and tastes.

By Joe Abken
Skylights Autumn 2005 Vol. 19, No. 3

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