Winter interest - for the smaller garden....
By majeekahead
12 comments
I must say i have very much injoyed reading both Spritz, and Andrew’s blogs over the last few days on winter interest in the garden, and yes i have been inspired to get out into my own garden and up close and personal with my own plants. My garden is far smaller than Spritz and Andrew’s but this does’nt mean it can’t have winter interest. i have been working very hard over the last couple of years on my garden, and as it was re-done from scratch about 18 months ago, most of what i have is still yet to reach it’s full potential. but here is what i have at the moment…….
Mmmmmmm….biggest wow factor going on here would have to be the spooky looking fleece tents i made, not really the look i was going for, but never the less very much needed, bearing in mind most of my plants are new in.
but on closer inspection, smaller plants for smaller garden,….
really into grasses at the moment, and there is room for some of these even if you only have a window box or a balcony,
Uncinia rubra
Carex morrowii ‘Fishers Form’
Carex ‘Comans Bronze’ in my winter baskets……
and a closer look…….
and then there is always my Heuchera collection….ok they may not stay green right through the winter, to be honest not sure about these varieties as first year i have had them, my ‘purple palace’ stayed green or should i say red, right through last year, but either way, at the moment they are still going strong.
H. ‘Key Lime Pie’
H. ‘Caramel’
H. ‘Dales Strain’
also there are thoughs summer flowering plants that we pay attention too in the summer, but what about now?
Common Lavender
Dusty Miller/Rose Campion
and how about evergreen ground cover, again can slot into the smallest of places…..
Bugle – Ajuga reptans
even better covered in heavy frost!
and what about this for WOW factor?
and ofcourse not forgetting some low growing evergreen shrubs;
Varigated Myrtle
Hebe ‘HeartBraker’
Hebe ‘Red Edge’
even a small garden has room for at least one tree, i have quite a few small trees, mostly Acers, that are pretty boring this time of year, but i do have this….
Cordyline ‘Red Star’ – and yes it is suposed to be fully hardy in the UK, mine is in a sheltered spot, but will have to let you know on that! lol.
also winter interest can also be found in plants that are not evergreen…..
how about these Clematis tangutica seed head, still hanging on in there for dear life, i realise that i may end up with baby plants all over the garden, leaving them on so long, but they just looks so… well…. interesting really…
and last but not least…..well being a florist, i could’nt really do this with out at least one winter flower could I,
Mahonia – in my view, very hard to beat in winter WOW factor!
to be honest this little gallery could go on and on, there are lots more, but that will do for now. And something esle i realised when walking around this morining is that i have a fungal infection on one or two of my other winter wonders, i had’nt noticed it before, Great! i thought, but lets face it now i know about it, i can treat it before it spreads! so this morings photo session really has paid off. lol
18 Dec, 2008
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Comments
Lovely photos and a super variety of textures and patterns.Thanks for sharing it with us.
18 Dec, 2008
thanks Grenville, glad you like it, i would imagine your small garden has plenty of winter interest, how bout you next? lol, and thanks Spritz, really enjoyed writing it. and about hebe heartbraker, mine was really good this time last year, it is not so good this year, have just pictured a bit that does'nt look too bad really, i thought it was dying all together last spring, but after a good mulching and a bit of a feed, it seemed to pick up, but it is still a bit leggy to be honest, and it does have a bit of spotting on the leaves was thinking a good prune would help, and a fungicide treatment? did'nt prune at all last year, so was contenplating doing it in the spring, what do you think? i know most hebe's can be hacked back and come back better, but this variety seems far less hardy in alot of ways to others, so not really sure if i am the best one to give advice on this really
18 Dec, 2008
If I pruned mine, it would just be a collection of small sticks, so maybe not! I will take your tip of mulching it - tomorrow - and giving it a feed in the spring. Thanks for that.
18 Dec, 2008
Your welcome, but to be honest Spritz, mine is green just on the top of the stems, if i prune mine would also be all sticks, but i know with other hebe's i have had before, you can cut back to the ground when this happens and they come back far nicer, to be honest not sure on this variety, but i have taken some cuttings as safe guard, not sure if they have rooted yet, will check this out in the spring and then make my decision. will let you know, if the cuttings take i can always send you one?
19 Dec, 2008
You have some lovely plants Angie.
19 Dec, 2008
What a nice blog & you do have some nice plants, enjoyed the photo's.
19 Dec, 2008
You have a lovely selection there Angie and have worked wonders in 18 months well done you :)
19 Dec, 2008
nice blog majeekahead. i like your garden and as you say .....in another couple of years!!!!! mines the same, every year it gets better, and every year we tinker a bit more, and then in the winter .....plan next years changes.thats the beauty of gardening............steve
19 Dec, 2008
thanks all of you for your kind comments, all very encouraging, Marquerite, not sure on that one, gues we will find out lol but i do live in quite a built up area, Greater London, so we don't get the worst of the UK's weather here, i have never know 30cm of snow - well not for a very long time anyway. but in all honesty, snow is not the problem, it's the frost, frost is what could get these plants, we do get heavy frost, i will re-blog in the spring when i take them all off and let you all know how effective they are. i did start of my summer baskets last year at the begining of april, with tents like these and we had heavy snow at easter, and they were beautiful. so i would have thought these plants would be fine, they are all hardy, just not well enough established yet to be able to cope with winter on there own, so it is a precaustion really. and thanks Steve, yes still lots to do out there, i already have plans that should take me up to about mid July lol, weather and money permitting ofcourse.
19 Dec, 2008
I loved all your plants but was especially fond of the "Key Lime Pie" and the "Hebe Heartbraker". Great blog.
19 Dec, 2008
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12 Sep, 2008
Great blog, Angie! I really enjoyed it and I hope that members with smaller gardens will 'get down' and take a closer look at the plants in their gardens, too - that is if they're not covered in snow! lol.
BTW - your Hebe 'Heartbreaker' is doing MUCH better than mine! I'll have to get some help from you about it.
18 Dec, 2008