My garden in winter may not be as filled with flowers as the June display, but I enjoy what is there, all the more, for its scarcity. There are plants that I rely upon each December through February to get me through the winter, and I could not imagine my garden being without these rays of color when they are most needed.
My year round garden is located a bit of a distance from my front door. I must admit there are times when I wish my garden was much closer. When the weather is really bad, such as the last 23 inches of snow, I tend not to walk in the garden, or go out the door unless it is a must. Our home does not lend itself to a favorite arm chair beside a picture window to place a new garden where I can sit in comfort and view my plants in bloom. Also, a bit more of a protected location would allow me to have more and better performing blooms during the worse months of winter.
There are backbone plants that I heavily depend upon. Among the
shrubs that reliably bloom in winter, witch-hazel (Hamamelis) is my
favorite. I have had the Chinese witch-hazel in my garden for enough years
that it is now mature (H. mollis). Come mid-December it begins displaying
the orange-yellow spider-like petals among the old heavily textured russet-
colored leaves from the previous year. The scent is highly fragrant and can
be picked up long before I reach the garden. Blooms open and close with
temperatures lasting well into April. This year I will be adding hybrid
companions of "Angelly" and "Sunburst". Angelly has clear yellow flowers
and will reach medium height, Sunburst has long petals and is the brightest
of the yellow blooms.
I just became aware of winter honeysuckle (Lonicere fragrantissima) and how reliably it blooms during winter months. It also has very lemon- sweet smelling scent from flowers of a quite cream color. It will eventually take up quite a bit of space and is more informal in appearance than the witch-hazels, so an exact location awaits the concept.
If I could have only one perennial for my winter garden it would have
to be Helleborus of some description. Exactly which one would be the
difficult decision.
Hellebore foetidus, or bearpaw hellebore, is at the top of my species list. The chartreuse bloom stalks rise from the olive-black-green old foliage beginning in mid-December here. The bloom stalk and buds continue to grow and form green bells by mid-February and last well into March and early April. Nothing seems to interfere with the display.
No winter garden is complete without H. niger, the Christmas rose, with its large white blooms in mid-February through April.
I enjoy the species helleborus torquatus and purpurascense for the dove gray-green blooms in early March. H. torquatus also happens to be one of the best of foliage plants. H. odorus is the best of the green blooms in my opinion.H. x garden hybridus, or Lenten rose, is of course, the most popular and well known of the hellborus. The sizes, bloom shapes and colors are almost endless in variety. Each year I find more forms for my garden. This year it is some of the newer double forms along with some of the newer named color strains.
If one has helleborus then they must also have companion plants. Number one on my list is Primula. There are so many easy to grow species and hybrids that begin blooming with the first warm spell breaking winter's hold, and bloom well into May. Must have primula that do not need extra and consistent moisture would be P. vulgaris and its hybrids including the double forms. P. veris would be second on my list of performers and I am enjoying the red-blooming Sunset strain more each year. The Juliana hybrids make great little groundcovers between clumps of helleborus. Finally, and certainly not least, are P. sieboldii the Japanese woodland primula, and P. kisaona with its wandering ways.
Why a garden in winter, indeed.