Make your garden a winter wonderland with plants which will not only survive the cold, but will look fantastic with a touch of frost or snow.
Award-winning garden designer Kate Gould offers advice
Winter gardens can be places of pure fairytale. Dusted with snow or dense frost, the stems and skeletons of many plants look magical in the ice cold light.
We think of our front gardens as places to hang lights and decorate the house for the festive season, but there are many plants that are jewel-like in their own right and are happy in both front and rear gardens which will add to the winter scene, even when not strewn with fairy lights, says garden designer Kate Gould, three times Chelsea Gold Medal winner.
"Cornus alba 'Sibirica' looks at its absolute best in the winter after it has shed its leaves," she notes. "From late November through to the spring, this particular cornus shows off its fiery red stems and is a real show stealer in the winter garden. Combined with an under-planting of Helleborus niger, the white flowered Christmas rose and some snowdrops or Fritillaria meleagris (snakeshead fritillary) and you will have something to look at all winter long."
Ilex aquifolium 'Nellie Stevens' is a particularly good fruiting holly and will berry in the right climatic conditions from November through to the spring, she continues.
"Although this particular holly will produce some berries on its own if you can provide its favoured pollinating partner, Ilex 'Edward J. Stevens' you will have a far more prolific crop. Usually left to grow into a medium-sized tree, it can be kept small by regular pruning which means that you will be able to reach and cut some branches to bring inside to decorate your home at Christmas."
Viburnum opulus and Callicarpa bodinieri var. giraldii 'Profusion' are both festooned with berries, red in the case of the viburnum and metallic mauve for the callicarpa which is possibly one of the most unusual winter plants you will see.
"If you prefer flowers to berries, then another great viburnum (of which there are many), Viburnum x bodnantense 'Dawn', has very pretty pink flowers that have a wonderful sweet scent and will flower, if the temperatures are relatively mild, all through the winter. Although the flowers do not last very long once cut, they do make a pretty if transient winter table decoration."
All these plants add to your winter scene and contribute to the summer borders as backdrop planting, but for a showier and more temporary glow in the winter garden, there is no better effect than fairy lights draped through planting or on the house as they really do create a sense of the holidays, says Gould.
"Decorating deciduous trees (where possible) also looks good and birch trees in particular look lovely with oversize decorations hung through their branches. Use simple decorations here and perhaps stick to a single colour. Red decorations are not only festive but look wonderful against the bright white birch branches.
"Winter gardens and homes in the truest sense of the pagan traditions of early England were about creating brightness and hope in the darkest of months with evergreen foliage and brightly coloured berries used as a reminder of sunnier times past and a herald of brighter times to come the following year. Fairy lights and decorations are a modern version of this tradition and they do brighten up the shortest and dullest of days."
:: For more information, visit www.kategouldgardens.com
BEST OF THE BUNCH - Ivy
So many people ignore the stunning black berries produced by certain ivies at this time of year, but they make a dramatic addition to door wreaths and table decorations - and they are pretty easy to grow in the garden. Hedera helix, the common English ivy, is a rampant climber but very useful for hiding eyesores in the garden. Nectar-rich flowers are produced from late summer until late autumn, an important food source for bees and other insects, while the black fruits which ripen in winter will sustain desperately hungry birds. Ivy is easy to grow and very hardy but prefers limy soil. Add a sprinkling of lime when you plant - to the base of the planting hole - and be patient because it takes a while to get going but once established will be long lived.
GOOD ENOUGH TO EAT - Turnips
As New Year approaches, many people will be serving haggis with the traditional 'neeps and 'tatties, which taste much better if you grow your own. Winter varieties of turnips are slow growing and need to be left to mature for storing though the winter. They are easy to grow, faring well in a slightly alkaline soil and don't need added organic matter, but it's better if they follow a crop manured the previous year. They can be sown in July and August, spacing the rows 30cm apart. Thin them early to avoid root damage, leaving 15cm between turnips. They don't need regular watering, but make sure the soil doesn't dry out completely or they'll end up tasting woody and tough. By September and October they should be ready for lifting, or can be left where they are until the New Year. Roots can be stored in boxes filled with sand in a cool, frost-free place. Good winter varieties include 'Golden Ball' which stores well.
WHAT TO DO THIS WEEK
:: Protect plants and pots vulnerable to frost damage
:: Add extra colour to your garden by adding hardy Cyclamen coum, which produces a carpet of pink and white blooms in the winter months
:: Earth up Brussels sprout stems to support them
:: Bring bay trees under cover to protect them from cold
:: Water plants which are overwintering under cover sparingly, to stop the roots rotting
:: Continue to clear garden debris which may be harbouring pests and diseases
:: Order or buy manure from farms or riding stables. Make sure it's well rotted if you are digging it in straight away, or stack fresher manure to rot down
:: Clean moss and algae from paths to stop them becoming slippery
:: Prune tall rose bushes, cutting them down by half to stop wind rock
:: Earth up spring cabbages to give them better anchorage in strong winds
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