When you are dealing with the challenge of winter landscaping, you should be careful to pick the right outdoor plants. The specific outdoor plans you select will help you to get the most out of wintertime. Continue to read and we will help you with getting some ideas on the best plants for winter landscaping.
- Include Decorative Grasses
By providing texture and some beauty to the winter environment, ornamental grasses may be a useful addition as well. When used across the area, hues of bronze, russet, gold, and tan may provide life to your environment. Ornamental grasses may provide some wonderful contrast when placed adjacent to evergreens.
An otherwise calm landscape might be given some dynamic appeal and sound by tall grasses blowing in the winter air. Be mindful, however, because they could break off and start to blow about if there is too much wind. If you decide to keep ornamental grasses up throughout the winter, spring cleanup may be a little more difficult. - Include witch hazel for an extra-wow effect
Although it may seem misleading to refer to a plant as having winter blossoms, there is such a plant. Witch hazel is a blooming plant that retains its brilliant yellow blooms even into the depths of winter.
Witch hazel, often known as the “Queen of Winter,” has a delightful citrus scent in addition to its beautiful color. On those gloomy winter days, adding something to your landscape may help liven things up. - Interesting Bark Adds Beauty
Your winter landscape may also benefit from the bark or even “bark habits” on certain plants. Exfoliating plants, like the Paperbark Maple, have a distinctive appearance. This tree’s cinnamon-colored bark is starting to peel off, exposing fresh bark beneath, which adds a lot of visual intrigue.
Another excellent technique to add color and complexity to your environment is using bark that has bigger patches. Actually, bark may be pretty colorful. The fascinating bark of Londonplane trees may be white, brown, or olive in color. And Yellow Twig Dogwood boasts striking yellow branches, but Red Twig Dogwood may offer a great splash of color with its vibrant red branches. - Fruit-bearing Plants Enhance the Appeal
Some wintertime landscaping plants yield fruit that is still edible in the winter, such as berries. Fruit comes in many colors, including orange, yellow, and red. Crabapple trees with flowers, like the Harvest Gold Crabapple, are one such alternative. The brilliant yellow fruit that this particular tree produces, which may significantly light up a landscape, is what makes it so lovely.
Holly varieties like Viburnum and Coral Berry also make lovely, vibrant choices. In the shrub family, winterberry hollies lose their leaves but keep their berries, creating a stunning winter display, particularly when paired with needled evergreens or on top of the snow. Another excellent option is the Winter King Hawthorn, a tiny tree that bears beautiful red berries. - Semi-Evergreens: The Best of Both Worlds
Occasionally, the term “semi-evergreen” is used to describe plants that only partially or temporarily lose their leaf in the winter but swiftly regenerate. For instance, Nandina cultivars are regarded as semi-evergreen since they may keep some of their leaves and even hang onto their blossoms later. They may also change hue. For example, during the colder months, the Blush Pink Nandina becomes pink or even crimson, offering a flash of color that looks lovely as an addition to your wintertime landscape architecture.
Semi-evergreen cultivars of viburnum include Leatherleaf. The name of this shrub comes from its blue-green color and gritty texture. Azalea species that are semi-evergreen are also seen. - Don’t Forget Broadleaf Evergreen Plant Varieties
Although broadleaf variations like boxwoods, hollies, certain types of laurels, as well as rhododendrons are considered evergreen shrubs as well, evergreens are typically viewed in terms of a needle-bearing species. In addition to having rich, year-round foliage, these plants also bloom at different times of the year, providing them with a broad range of interest or appeal throughout the year.
Southern magnolia and Hollies are two fantastic broadleaf tree types that keep their foliage throughout the winter. There are several hues, textures, and greens in various tones that may provide a great deal of interest in the winter as well as the rest of the year. - For year-round greenery, use needled evergreens.
Needled evergreens, prized for their all-year-round beauty, may provide complexity and color to an uninteresting winter environment. Blue, yellow, or even green needles on needled evergreens may offer a lot of interest.
For instance, the Eastern White Pine is a wonderful tree with lovely, brilliant green needles. While some people see it as dirty due to the needles it drops or the cones it produces, it may make a significant statement in a desolate winter scene. With their thinner needles, fir and spruce trees are another lovely alternatives for combining various colors of green or even blue tones.
You may also take into account shrubs with needles that are evergreen. Various varieties of cypress, yews, and arborvitae are also suitable choices. Additionally, there are smaller varieties of needled trees that make wonderful vertical accents for decorations. Miniature pines, hemlocks, spruces, and cypresses are a few alternatives.
Final words
Now you are aware of the best plants that you can possibly use for winter landscaping. Trees would lose their leaves during the winter months. However, the remaining bark will be able to attract attention. This is why we strongly encourage you to go ahead with getting trees that have dark-colored barks and branches. You will be able to add a unique contrast to your winter landscape with them. On top of that, you should focus more on going ahead with evergreens. Make sure that you also consider getting some ornamental grasses to improve the overall good looks of your winter garden. For example, oranges and tans can deliver a unique effect when they are covered in snow.
Would you like a landscaping design quote? Just fill out the quick form below and a professional from our team will reach out.
Request Quote
"*" indicates required fields