In winter, the “bones” of your garden are most evident. Deciduous plants lose their leaves and show off their branching structure or “architecture”, creating a stunning backdrop for berries and seed heads. This is a starkly different look than the lushness of the summer garden, but equally attractive. The graceful, leaf-less branches offer excellent bird viewing, since the exposed berries and seed heads will attract these feathery visitors. This article has more information on berry-producing plants that provide food for the birds.
In choosing candidates for your winter container garden, look for plants and shrubs that will have enough height to rise above the snowy cover that blankets many a garden. Perennial ornamental grasses, such as switch grass (Panicum virgatum) are ideal for their form, height and graceful beauty. And nothing is so elegant as the finely crafted branches of a Japanese maple (Acer palmatum), often described as “living sculpture”. Of particular interest for the winter garden are varieties that have spectacular bark, in addition to the lovely branches, such as A. palmatum ‘Sango Kaku’, with vibrant coral colored stems.
No winter garden would be complete without evergreens, as they are not only hardy but beautiful. And what evokes winter more truly than snow-laden evergreen boughs? Some of my favorite conifers are junipers, particularly Juniperus chinensis ‘Gold Coast’, for its lacy yellowish foliage and J. c. ‘Pfitzerana Glauca’, for its silvery blue foliage on arching branches. One of the columnar types of juniper (J. scopulorum ‘Skyrocket’ or ‘Wichita Blue’) would provide a dramatic accent in a container, either alone or in a grouping.
Another evergreen perennial (non-conifer) that offers good color and even flowers through the winter is the hellebore, a member of the buttercup family. Helleborus niger, the Christmas rose, may be the most well known in this group, taking its name from the fact that its showy white blooms generally appear from mid to late December. More attractive in my view is H. argutifolius with light green cupped flowers sitting atop darker green leathery leaves.
Containers are the perfect way to plant a winter garden, because they give you the flexibility to relocate them either for better sunlight or to avoid a hard frost. You can also group them near your windows or front entrance so their beauty can be easily enjoyed from inside. It's the freeze-thaw cycle that puts stress on a container and ultimately causes it to crack, so depending on the severity of your winter, you may need to protect your containers. Wrap them in burlap or an old blanket on particularly chilly nights, or bring them into the garage.
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