Landscape planning for year-round color
Amy Jordan
Originally published 12:34 p.m., January 17, 2008
Updated 12:34 p.m., January 17, 2008
Landscapes tend to be monochromatic and boring this time of year.
Garden planning usually takes place during the growing season with emphasis placed on flower color or foliage height and texture.
By carefully selecting plants that have winter interest in addition to attributes in spring, summer, or fall, landscapes can be enjoyable all year. Design is important so that plants are placed where they will be most commonly enjoyed.
Evergreens are the big players in the winter because of what their name suggests; they are green at a time when not much else is. There are many different shapes, sizes and colors of junipers that stand out in any season. Broad-leaved evergreens are another option for winter interest. Some varieties of pine or spruce could be chosen, but be sure to research them first to identify ones that are adapted to Kansas. Information on recommended plants is available through the K-State Research and Extension office.
Plants chosen for winter interest do not have to be limited to evergreens. There are many plants, even flowering perennials, that can contribute to the landscape in the winter months. Many ornamental grasses are well adapted to our growing conditions and add a vertical element and softening effect during the summer. Then, with their plumes left intact over the winter, they really earn their place in the garden. Rather than cutting off the spent blooms of perennials, leave them on throughout the winter so birds can feed on the seeds. There will be plenty of opportunity to do some clean-up in the spring before new growth resumes.
Parts of the plants other than foliage can be colorful or interesting. Even trees with horizontal branching patterns are interesting if there is snow adding white to the bark color.
Here is information on a few woody ornamental plants that should be considered for a winter landscape. Ward Upham, horticulturist with K-State Research and Extension, offers these suggestions:
Redosier Dogwood (Cornus stolonifera). The young stems of this plant are bright red during the winter months and become more intensely colored toward spring. Older stems are often pruned out during the spring to encourage more of the young, more brightly colored twigs. Redosier Dogwood is tolerant of shade.
Yellow Twig Dogwood (Cornus stolonifera ‘Flaviramea’). This shrub is much like Redosier Dogwood except the twigs are bright yellow rather than red. Winged Euonymus or Burning Bush (Euonymus alatus). This is the shrub that attracts so much attention in the fall because of the flaming red coloration of the fall foliage. However, the stems are also ornamental in the winter due to their winged characteristics which tend to catch and hold snow.
Lacebark Elm (Ulmus parvifolia). This is the true Chinese elm. A tough durable tree, the lacebark elm adapts well to poor soils and extremes in pH. The bark is what really sets this tree apart during the winter due to its mottled combinations of gray, green, orange and brown. River Birch (Betula nigra). This is another tree that has very interesting winter bark. The flaky bark is reddish-brown to peach colored and contrasts nicely with snow. River birch tolerates both wet and dry sites.