Vialii’s Top 10 Plants For A Winter Border

Wednesday, 18 December 2013

Winter is definitely here but as we explained in our recent blog “Winter Wonderland” it doesn’t mean that your garden should look any less attractive. Different plants look great in winter for different reasons, whether it be their foliage, berries, stems or flowers. In this blog we have listed our top ten plants for a winter border…

Mahonia × media ‘Charity’

The spiny leaves of this shrub are attractive but it’s the yellow, beautifully scented flowers that make this shrub a must for winter.

Helleborus niger (Christmas Rose)

We love hellebores and the white flowers of the niger are particularly attractive, nodding above the attractive foliage.

Hamamelis × intermedia (Witch Hazel)

The witch hazel provides wonderful colours through Autumn but it’s winter when you will get the beautiful yellowy orange, fragrant flowers.

Cornus alba ‘Elegantissima’ (Red Barked Dogwood)

The red stems of the dogwood make a wonderfully eye-catching feature in a winter border. Mass plant for full effect.

Skimmia x confusa ‘Kew Green’

The shiny green leaves and gently scented flowers are a great addition to a winter garden. Plant alongside a female plant and she will reward you with berries too.

Viburnum x bodnantense ‘Dawn’

“Bod Dawn” as she is known to us is a lovely addition to the garden. A vigorous shrub with lovely pink flowers over winter.

Daphne bholua ‘Jacqueline Postill’

Another fragrant joy for the garden over winter, the daphne also has pretty flowers and foliage.

Sarcococca confusa (Sweet Box)

The sarcococca is a beautiful evergreen shrub but make sure you plant it somewhere you can take full advantage of its lovely scent. Lovely black fruit follows on from the flowers.

Carex buchananii

Grasses are wonderful additions to the winter garden, especially when they are covered in frost. We love the bronzed colour of the buchananii and its graceful clumped shape. Mass plant for effect. We love them planted around the base of Betula jacquemontii (silver birch) trees.

Corylus contorta (Contorted Hazel)

The contorted hazel looks wonderful all year round with its catkins in Spring and lovely crinkly foliage over Summer. But for us it looks best in winter when you can truly appreciate its magical contorted structure.

So with all these pretty flowers, interesting stems and beautiful scents you will be tempted back out into the garden over winter. Just make sure you have winter woollies on your Christmas list!

We are signing off now for the festive period but thank you for reading our posts in 2013 and we will be back in 2014 with lots of interesting articles on gardens. In the meantime we would like to wish you all a wonderful Christmas and New Year.

Warmest wishes,

All at Vialii