Embrace the Winter Garden
For many of us the garden season is a wrap. We have cleaned and sharpened our tools and put gardens “to bed” for the winter. For this gardener, winter is the fourth season and just as important as any other season in the garden.This is when texture, structure, evergreens and the diversity of monochromatics really perform. The naturalistic garden from my window view is beautiful in all stages of its growing cycle, especially in winter. This is a work in progress and more structural plantings (bones) can always be added next season. I leave the ornamental grasses uncut and the seedheads standing. The garden may look like it is dead, but it is very much alive.
What exactly are our plants doing in the winter garden? Plants have adapted over time to withstand sub-freezing temperatures (illinois.edu). A USDA hardiness zone is the average extreme winter temperature in a geographic area. Spring Glen is in a Hardiness Zone of 7a (average lowest winter temps are 0°F to 5°F). It is important to know what your plant hardiness zone is. Cold tolerant plants go through a period of rest called dormancy. A plant conserves sugars and carbohydrates produced in the spring and summer and used by the roots to survive the winter and in the spring initiate growth (unh.edu). Winter water, rain or snow, is crucial as it insulates the root system and aids the tiny root hairs, in concert with mycorrhizal fungi to uptake the nutrients from the soil (colostate.edu). In a dry fall and winter the roots begin to suffer and die back. Because of the plant’s stored energy we don’t notice the signs of drought stress right away, it’s only later in the season and sometimes the following year where a plant has lost its vigor or does not return at all to the garden. It is important to water a winter garden if there is no precipitation for 3-4 weeks. Water mid-day when temperatures are above 40 degrees F, before the temperature dips and water freezes at night.
Don’t cut back the garden. This is an aesthetic and ecological choice. Seed heads provide winter beauty in the garden and food for birds. Prairie plants and natives look particularly good with a powdering of snow. Echinacea and Agastache seed heads in particular are stunning with frost on top. Ornamental grasses can be left standing for movement in the garden and then cut back 8-24” late winter to create habitat for stem nesting bees.
Naomi Slade, author of The Winter Garden, states that "without woody shrubs, a winter garden becomes flat”. Cornus stolonifera ‘Arctic Fire’ (Red Osier Dogwood) is a diminutive shrub with fiery red stems.Hamamelis virginiana (witch hazel), and Ilex verticillata (winterberry) look great all year. Amelanchier arborea (Downy Serviceberry) is a beautiful multi-stemmed tree with early blooms and burgundy foliage in the fall. Any woodie with exfoliating bark is a wonderful addition to the winter garden.
Evergreens provide that pop of green in a winter landscape. They also provide a winter habitat for non-migrating birds. Evergreens survive winter by having waxy coatings called cutin. This coating helps slow down water loss and allows the plant to photosynthesize in periods of low rain/snowfall, thus supplying the evergreen a constant energy source. While evergreens come in all shapes and sizes, consider adding perennial evergreens such as, hellebores and carex to your winterscape. If you have a small space there are many dwarf size evergreens and conifers that look great in winter-proof containers. Winter containers strategically placed in the window view is another winter garden structural element. Look for plants that can withstand two degrees less than your hardiness zone, so a zone 5 plant for our geographic area. Trees and shrubs look great in containers and then can be added to the garden later.
The lighting in winter can be so dramatic. Cherish the sunrise and sunsets. Frosty mornings show the winter garden the best. Take notice (or photograph) what is backlit and place your plants accordingly when planting in the spring. The use of solar lighting in the garden in winter gently illuminates and adds a magical atmosphere in the evenings.
Our gardens are more than a one season wonder. Consider all of the seasons. Do not be disturbed by the decaying and sleeping garden. There is beauty to be found in all seasons of one’s life in the garden.
Happy Solstice and Holidays.
