Dazzle the Landscape with Gorgeous Winter Plants

Things can get a little drab this time of year, with the last of the fall color fading. The landscape can easily settle into a backdrop of plain old evergreen. Well, it doesnâ€™t have to be this way. We have several plants that will help enliven the landscape and give that â€œwowâ€ factor, even during the winter. We listed a few of our favorites in our blog last year but we wanted to include some other beauties that we keep in stock, including some newer varieties. Check our online inventory to find the sizes that are right for your project. Contact us here to order any of the following plants today!

Holboellia coriacea (China Blue Vine):

This vigorous evergreen vine is woody, hardy and dependable. It offers thick, glossy green foliage year round and produces lovely, fragrant bell-shaped flowers in spring that range in color from ivory to pink to mauve. It is hardier than evergreen clematis and holds the lower foliage better as well, thus making it not so top heavy on a trellis. Edible plum-like fruits appear in fall in pairs, adding a rich purple color to the landscape. They can thrive in cold winter temperatures, even below freezing, so they grow quite well in our climate. Plant these anywhere you would plant clematis: up a fence or trellis or train it over an arbor.

Sarcococca h. humilis â€˜Fragrant Valleyâ€™ (Fragrant Valley Sweetbox)

The Fragrant Valley Sweetbox fills in much better than the straight species. Itâ€™s compact, thick growing habit makes a fantastic filler in containers and works well as a lovely evergreen groundcover. It stays quite small, about six inches shorter than average, and has a slightly smaller leaf. But it still blooms with lovely, heavily scented flowers in late winter/early spring. It is fairly disease-resistant and deer-resistant and works well in most shady areas.

Daphne odora Zuiko Nishiki (Winter Daphne â€˜Zuiko Nishikiâ€™)

This is one of the loveliest Winter Daphnes. This evergreen, rounded shrub is an all-green version of the â€˜Marginataâ€™ and is better in every way. It demonstrates increased vigor; it holds its leaves better throughout the winter; it is hardier; some even say it is more fragrant! This Japanese selection has a heavy late-winter bloom of heavenly fragrant pink and white flowers. Dark rosy-pink buds appear in early winter, giving their own beauty against the long, lustrous dark green leaves, before bursting into rich, sweet-scented blooms. ‘Zuiko Nishiki’ reaches 3 to 4 feet high and wide with a rounded, upright growth habit (less sprawling habit than most Daphnes). It grows very well in our mild climate.

Daphne odora â€˜Lawrence Crockerâ€™ (Winter Daphne ‘Lawrence Crocker’)

This is a diminutive evergreen Daphne hybrid that usually grows in a mounded form, reaching about one foot in both height and width. It is a thick, slow-growing shrub with narrow dark-green evergreen leaves and fragrant deep pink flowers that bloom in late spring. It grows best in partial shade in well-drained soils.Â It works well in containers, small gardens or even rock gardens, as a focal point. It also works well as a low-growing hedge or as a pathway edging.

Mahonia x media â€˜Charityâ€™ (Charity Mahonia)

This stately evergreen shrub is an excellent focal point for the winter garden. It has theatrical, frond-like leaves that grow in great whorls along its thickly branched stems. It puts on quite the winter show with soft yellow blooms appearing during the early part of the year. They develop into clusters of black berries by late summer. It has a statuesque, upright growth habit and a stunning display of foliage and flowers, making it an ideal center piece in the garden.

Dazzle the Landscape with Gorgeous Winter Plants

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