Color in the Winter Garden
Linda R McMahan, Ph.D.
Horticulturist and Botanist
Oregon State University Extension Service
COLOR IN THE WINTER GARDEN
Expected & Familiar
Bracket the Season
Stars of Winter Bloom
Small Pleasures
Lesson from China
Oregon Native Plants for Winter
Beware Invasive Plants
EXPECTED & FAMILIAR
Hardy cyclamen (Cyclamen coum), blooms winter & early spring—leaf patterns carry garden interest through other seasons
EXPECTED & FAMILIAR
Early spring bulbs signal the end of winter
Snowdrops (Galanthus) and crocus
EXPECTED AND FAMILIAR
Hellebores (Helleborus) of many kinds bloom even earlier!
EXPECTED AND FAMILIAR
Winter daphnes such as Daphne odora ‘Marginata’ http://oregonstate.edu/dept/IDplants
OTHER FAVORITES
Photos: Forsythia, Camellia japonica, Erica http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ldplants
BRACKET THE SEASON
Watch winter’s approach with colorful foliage and berriesPreview spring with a succession of bulbs and early bloomers
Ginkgo biloba & lungwort, Pulmonaria ‘Sisinghurst White’
FALL COLOR
Catsura tree (Cercidiphyllum japonicum)Photo: Linda McMahan
Japanese stewartia (Stewartia pseudocamellia) photo: http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ldplants/
LATE BERRIES & SEEDS
India currant (Symphoricarpos arbiculatus)
Seeds of a single flower Peony
Iris foetidissima, grown not for the flowers (usually pale blue) but for the persistent winter berries
STINKING IRIS
Orange berries of Iris foetidissima
PIERIS JAPONICATraditional, tough, evergreen shrub, drought-tolerant, colorful new foliage and early flowers-many cultivars available
FLOWERING QUINCE
Full size or dwarf Chaenomeles are early spring bloomers photo: http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ldplants/
THE STARS OF WINTER BLOOM
Focus on flowering shrubs
Create possibility of flowers
every day of the year
WHITE “FORSYTHIA”
Abeliophyllum distichum, Fragrant blooms very early spring, multi-stemmed shrub to 5 ft
SWEET BOXSarcocca confusa planted in a sheltered location, survives our Western Oregon winters and emits a strongly sweet fragrance from white flowers, followed by black berries
http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ldplants/
SASANQUA CAMILLIA
Camellia sasanqua, a less-known, smaller evergreen camellia, blooms in December. Can be trained to a trellis. Cultivars with white, pink and red flowers. Open habit.
WINTER HAZEL
Corylopsis spicata and C. pauciflora (inset). Elegant deciduous shrubs, 6-8 feet, fragrant blooms early spring.
http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ldplants/
WITCH HAZEL
Hamamelis species and cultivars, many types with different blooms and bloom times. Some also have great fall color.
http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ldplants/
WINTER JASMINE
Jasminum nudiflorum, as the common name suggests, is strongly fragrant. Trailing habit good for slopes, may need support http://
oregonstate.edu/dept/ldplants/
FRAGRANT WINTERSWEET
Chimonanthes praecox, another fragrant addition to the winter garden
http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ldplants/
ARTHUR MENZIES MAHONIA
Mahonia x media ‘Arthur Menzies’ From a seedling selected at Seattle’s Washington Park Arboretum
http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ldplants/
SMALL TREASURES
Look carefully at plants you
already have
Winter garden reveals nature’s
flow
NEW CONES ON CONFERS
Conifers often produce tiny male and female cones beginning in late winter—discover the cycles in your garden
LEAF SHAPES & SKELETONS
Maple leaves in frost
Decaying magnolia leaf with vein patters
TINY MOSSES SHINE IN DAMP COLD OREGON WINTERS
EVERGREEN LEAVES OF OREGON GRAPE BACKLIT BY THE SUN
Berberis nervosa
FALLEN CONES
Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)
LICHENS In winter, lichens on trees swell with the additional moisture
FERN FRONDS In late winter, fern
leaves (fronds) begin to unfurl creating fantastic patterns-bracken fern and sword fern shown
BARK TAKES CENTER STAGE
LESSON FROM CHINA
USE GARDEN ART AND INNOVATIVE SCULPTURE
OREGON NATIVE PLANTS FOR
WINTER
Red flowering currant, Ribes sanguineum, blooms Feb/Mar in shades of red, pink, and white, attract hummingbirds
COLTSFOOT
Petasites frigidus at the McMinnville Public Library
SPRING QUEEN Synthyris
reniformis blooms March in Western Oregon—delicate native wildflower
SNOWBERRY Symphorocar
pus albus provides winter food for birds
SILK TASSEL BUSH
Garrya elliptica from Oregon South Coast provides elegant drooping flowers in Jan/Feb. Large evergreen shrub
OSOBERRY
Oemleria cerasiformis, the earlier native shrub to bloom in our forests
A FINAL THOUGHT!
Please Avoid Invasive Species
Look for alternatives in
GardenSmart Oregon—free and
available for download at:
http://oregoninvasiveshotline.org
ENGLISH HOLLY
Substitute with other Ilex such as winterberry or Meser Reserve holly shown below
Meser Reserve holly, Ilex x meserveae
Winterberry, Ilex verticillata
Bottom photos: http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ldplants/
Photo: Linda McMahan
THANK YOU!
Linda R McMahan, [email protected] by the author unless noted. Others used by permission of Pat Breen, Oregon State University--published at http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ldplants © Oregon State University 2011. You may use this publication freely for educational purposes. For other uses, please contact the author
Recommended
