Plant Trees and Shrubs That Add Interest to a Garden in Winter

Tons of homeowners run down to their local nursery to pick up shrubs and small trees for their garden design. You can actually find some great deals by purchasing cold-hardy plants, shrubs and trees out of season, so to speak, prior to the thermometer dropping in September and October.

The problem is that these same homeowners don’t exactly know what to do with their cold-hardy plants and shrubs or whether they can set to work planting them in late fall and early winter or if they have to wait until the weather warms up in spring to put on their gardener’s hat.

How to Deal with Cold-Hardy Trees, Plants and Shrubs

What you may not know is that a variety of shrubs, plants, perennials, and trees can survive and even thrive in – what the USDA terms – the coldest planting zones in the country.

So, the question no doubt on the minds of everyone in these more frigid hardiness zones is whether to keep your trees and shrubs in pots throughout the cooler months or whether you can get started in late fall.

The answer’s that you can choose to do either, but you can definitely set to work right now, start planting in the late fall, and beautify your garden and outdoor decor throughout the winter and into the verdant spring months. Evergreen shrubs and hawthorn are two popular options.

What you still want to do, though, is manage your expectations and perhaps set your sights lower than a veritable Garden of Eden springing up in the crisp winter months. Here’s how to get started:

• Follow Nature’s Lead

You would be very hard-pressed to find potted plants, much less artificial ones, growing wild out in nature.

Taken that to its logical extension, your plants and shrubs will typically be healthier and happier by being put into the ground than staying in a plastic pot in your garage throughout the winter season.

• What Should I Plant?

Evergreen garden shrubs are but one example of resilient shrubs that can really add another dimension to your garden and front lawn during the winter without causing too much heartache in terms of worry or added energy you have to expend to make it happen.

Both conifer trees and evergreen shrubs can make it through winter in one piece, and the needle-leaf style of evergreen shrubs are normally considered more robust in cold-hardy climates.

Yew and Juniper are two kinds of evergreen garden shrubs that are resilient, tolerant to cold temperatures and drought conditions, yet really benefit from developing their root networks early in the fall (if you’re thinking about planting these early) as opposed to waiting until early-to-mid spring.

Deciduous trees like the Japanese Maple, eucalyptus, birch or hawthorn tree can even demonstrate fruit growth in the winter, which really adds a splash of color and interesting contrast against the icicles and powdery, white winter snow.

• Going About It the Right Way

Year-round plants, shrubs and trees don’t actually need the extra shot in the arm that less hardy flora might.

There’s no need to use a crazy amount of fertilizer or growth agents in the late fall to get the most out of these trees and shrubs throughout the winter.

Still, realize that many of these flora grow upwards and their root networks are delicate at this early stage. Try not to move around or prune these shrubs early in their development.

Much and a little water in the fall are probably all these plants need to avoid desiccation and thrive for you year-round. Contact us today for more tips or help in getting started.

Tagged: DK Landscaping, landscape, Landscape Maintenance