Plants for Winter Interest
As we head into winter here in Southeast Michigan and Northwest Ohio you might be looking at your landscape with a tinge of sadness as the leaves have fallen off and the evergreens are your only pop of color. That’s where professional horticulturists come into play to give you options to keep your landscape interesting all year long.
When it comes to winter interest, evergreens are the obvious option for color. When we drive through our region we notice that a majority of the evergreens in use are Yews and Boxwoods; not terrible plants as every plant has a use, but they’re outdated and make us feel like we’re back in the 80’s. So what should replace these outdated shrubs with? There are a multitude of options for evergreen color and interest throughout the cold months. Some of our favorites are smaller, globe shaped Arborvitaes such as Hetz Midget, Mr. Bowling Ball, Fire Chief, Golden Globe, and Golden Tuffet just to name a few! We like these Arborvitaes for their form, texture, and most importantly their color. Boxwoods have a pretty typical small, glossy leaf and can provide good color and structure through the winter, but these Arborvitae, with their fan like foliage and flowy texture give a different, more inviting feeling to the landscape throughout the cold months. As you can probably guess by the names, the Fire Chief, Golden Globe, and Golden Tuffet are either a golden yellow or a golden orange color which adds amazing contrast to any other evergreen you might want in your landscape!
Another beautiful shrub to use for winter interest are Rhododendrons. While some Rhododendrons can get very large there are a lot of different varieties that will stay compact and make a good foundation shrub. The best thing about Rhododendrons is that they keep their glossy, large, green leaves throughout the winter while still showcasing their stout branches and spectacular form. The other great thing about Rhododendrons is they are often times the harbinger of spring with their huge, ruffled blooms. Whether you want a red, white, pink, or purple bloom to usher in spring, Rhododendrons can make it happen! Olga Mezitt is a compact variety with a beautiful light purple flower and a nice round structure, great for winter and spring interest. Another great Rhododendron family that is easy to grow are the Catawbiense species. The three that are the best for our region are the White Catawba Rhododendron, Boursault Catawba Rhododendron, and the Grandiflorum Catawba Rhododendron. These all have great foliage that stay glossy and full all winter, and the White Catawba has beautiful white spring blooms, the Boursault has bright pink flowers with some dark pink veins, and the Grandiflorum has a light pink, almost airy bloom and all are amazing harbingers of spring time!
Now that we have a few varieties of shrubs that we can plant in our yards for winter interest it’s time for a couple of trees that look incredible all year round. These aren’t necessarily large, middle of the yard trees, but instead they are accent trees that work well in your landscape and fairly close to your home. They don’t get too large but still offer great form and texture all year.
The first tree, and also our favorite tree, is the Royal Raindrops Crabapple. Crabapples have a bad reputation for being messy and hard to work with, which is why Royal Raindrops is our favorite. Although they obviously drop crabapples which can be a little messy, they don’t shed near as bad as other varieties and they also have a lot less health or structural issues. Our favorite thing about the Royal Raindrops Crabapple is that it’s a tree for all four seasons. In the spring it has incredible pink blooms that cover the whole tree, in the summer the leaves are a beautiful and deep purple that persist through the fall before turning yellow, and in the winter it has an amazing purple bark and a fantastic branching structure. When we add some landscape lighting on a Royal Raindrops it’s a showstopper all year round!
Another one of our favorite landscape trees for year round is the Paperbark Maple. Most people read Maple and immediately think of a shade tree, and while 99% of the time you would be correct, the Paperbark Maple is the exception to the rule. This landscape tree is very slow growing which makes it a great addition to your current beds and also means that you get to enjoy it for years to come. The dark green summer foliage gives way to almost fire orange fall color that is absolutely breathtaking. Once the leaves fall the trees namesake can show off. The bark on the Paperbark Maple is exactly what you would expect from the name. As the tree grows the old bark practically peels off in a paperlike manner. This gives the tree amazing character and the cinnamon brown color is absolutely when contrasted against a fresh winters snow or a beautiful Rhododendron.
Now for our all time favorite winter addition to your landscape; the Jetstream Oakleaf Hydrangea! If you’re looking for an absolute showstopper and the best four seasons shrub for your landscape, look no further. With semi rough, deep green foliage through the spring and summer, showy white blooms that turn red towards their bloom cycle, and deep red/purple fall color, this shrub is hard to beat. The thing that makes it an absolute jaw dropping show stopper is the bark. Similar to the Paperbark Maple, the Jetstream Oakleaf Hydrangea has incredible peeling bark that oozes character all winter long. When you have guests over for your Thanksgiving or Holiday parties you can rest assured that as they come up your walkway they’ll be green with envy!
