A Landscape for All Seasons
We have a privilege here in the continental U.S., though we
frequently take it for granted. We have the luxury of a
climate that changes dramatically season to season. It is
like a sampling of the different environments provided on
Earth. And yet, even the best of us can falter, and have
wishes of living in a place where it's 72.5 degrees
Fahrenheit year round, a place where 'freeze' is something
the refrigerator or computer screen does. After all, in a
climate like that, your gardens would look good all year
long. You would have something interesting to view outside
your kitchen window, even in January. You would not have to
live in this barren winter wasteland that is your landscape
now. Here in the temperate zone, nothing can look good in
your gardens this time of year, right?
Hey, put that phone down; you don't have to call your
realtor just yet. Thankfully, you don't have to move so you
can have an interesting landscape throughout the year. Many
plants that look their best, even during the most dreary
parts of the freezing winters here, can be found at many
gardening centers. Whether you are looking for greenery,
winter blooms, architectural lines, or fragrance in your
garden, there is a plant out there that offers it's best
show during the worst of the cold weather. All you have to
do is look.
To make your landscape put on a show no matter what the
season, take a page out of a financial advisor's ledger and
diversify, diversify, diversify. A sweeping vista of azaleas
will look amazingly colorful in spring, but what about the
rest of the year? The colorful vista would fade painfully
into the background during the other eleven months, leaving
nothing to tantalize your eyes for three long seasons.
However, if you take out a few of those short-flowering
azaleas and replace them with a mix of shrubs that are at
their peak at different times of the year, your vision will
be treated to a spectacle no matter what month you look.
"Oh, sure, this is all fine and dandy, but what in the world
will fill up those cold winter months?" you wonder. Perhaps
surprisingly, there are quite a few specimens that you can
select from. Granted, the farther south you live, the more
choice you will have, but unless you call the tundra home,
there is a plant for you.
One of the easiest plant finds for your winter garden are
evergreen plants, or plants that retain their leaves
throughout the year. Some readily-available plants of this
type are hollies (Ilex spp.), junipers and other coniferous
shrubs, evergreen azaleas, and cherry laurel (Prunus
laurcerasus varieties). These plants offer a solid mass of
green all year round. However, to get the most out of your
winter landscape, green mounds are not enough. By using
evergreens as a background to set off other, more colorful
plants, you will be able to make your gardens as
eye-catching as any other time of the year.
Adding a plant that provides blooms or berries in winter is
a great way to add beauty to your landscape. The hard part
is finding such a plant. Though the majority of available
shrubs and flowers do bloom during the more
favorably-conditioned warmer months of the year, there are
those plants that put on their show during the stark winter.
Here in the South, one of the most gorgeous flowers of all
blooms in winter: the camellia (Camellia spp.). Some other
winter bloomers are winter honeysuckle (Lonicera
fragrantissima), winter daphne (Daphne odora), and witch
hazel (both Hammamelis species and Loropetalum species). The
honeysuckle and daphne also add a fantastic fragrance to
your property. For winter berries, try adding some plants
like the aptly-named winterberry (Ilex verticilliata),
hollies (Ilex spp.), pyracantha (Pyracantha spp.), and
viburnums (Viburnum spp.). By adding some of these and other
plants to your gardens, you will be provided with some
winter blooms and berries to brighten your landscape into
early spring.
Another lesser-used method to add interest to the
winterscape is by using the architectural characteristics of
a plant in it's winter state. There are many trees and
shrubs that, though they have lost their leaves for the
winter, can retain a very artistic look to them throughout
the colder months. For example, let's say you have a
nicely-branched japanese maple in your garden. During
spring, summer, and fall, it fills your landscape with
colors of green, orange, and red. But what about in winter,
when there are no leaves at all? If presented correctly, the
branching habit of this small tree can be absolutely
breathtaking.
First off, observe the background behind the tree. Is it one
solid color, like an evergreen hedge or stuccoed wall?
Having a background that is not visually chaotic or busy
will show off the tree's structure more aptly. Secondly, is
there any sort of light accenting the tree during the
evening hours? Since there are less daytime hours in winter,
providing a nighttime lighting source will make the tree an
accent in your landscape day and night. Try experimenting
with different lighting techniques, like uplighting or
backlighting. Lastly, don't forget about location, location,
location. No matter what month of the year it is, if your
accent plant is not placed in a noticeable spot in your
garden, it is not an accent plant; it is a plant that
attracts attention to a less desirable area of your
landscape. Make sure your prized bit of flora is residing in
the location that is best suited to it, both culturally and
visually.
Once you've got your accent shrubs properly highlighted and
your plant selections properly sorted out, you will have a
landscape that will form a fantastic composition no matter
the season. A diversified landscape that always has a bit of
something at it's peak at any given time can be more vivid
than a landscape where all the plants are at their most
intense all at once. So don't despair during the winter
months with daydreams of tropical horizons. Embrace your
temperate zone privilege and create an all-year landscape.
Carrie P. Williams is a professional landscape designer with
Turf Tamer, Inc. She has written many informative
landscaping articles for Turf Tamer's Tip of the Week
program. Want to learn more landscaping tips and
tricks? Go to HYPERLINK
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http://www.turftamerinc.com/tip.shtm"
http://www.turftamerinc.com/tip.shtm
to sign up for the 'Tip of the Week' and learn more tips!
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