7 Container Plantings to Bring Winter Gardens to Life
Winter can be bland at the best of times. While the structure plants of your garden can usually hold interest all year, containers that punctuate key areas of the space in the summer can look pretty tired once winter rolls around. We like to combat this by making the rounds of our clients' gardens early in winter and switching up container plantings for items that will flourish through the colder months.
Traditional cedar boughs and holly can be quite festive in a container, and they work well with Christmas lights, but what about when the holidays are over and the lights have been put away? We like to focus on plant combinations that add instant color and can hold their own for months on end. In the spring the containers can be revitalized by moving some of the plants to garden beds and filling the holes with bulbs.
Here are some of our favorite plant selections that can be mixed and matched to create striking contemporary container arrangements.
Twigs, hellebore and dwarf cypress. This container's small size didn't allow for a dogwood plant, but the same effect is achieved by using dogwood twigs. (Ornamental twigs are usually available at nurseries over the winter months.) The chartreuse green of the miniature cypress makes for a bold statement, and the container is finished off with a hellebore, which will flower all through the winter. This is an easy, low-maintenance combination of textures and colors that really complements this modern residence.
This container consists of:
Dogwood twigsDwarf golden cypress Hellebore
Purple kale and coral bells. A container next to the front door draws the eye to the house and can often deflect attention from a front garden that lies dormant through the colder months. This container bursts with color and texture, and the individual plants can be repurposed in future containers or moved to new homes in the garden once they outgrow the container.
This container consists of:
Fire twig dogwoodCorokiaPurple ornamental kaleCoral bells 'Creme Brulee'Spurge 'Black Bird'Gold carexScotch moss
Moss and dogwood. Bright green moss contrasts nicely with the vibrant color of redtwig dogwood in this entryway container. This simple but effective combination of color and texture comes to life with the addition of pinecones. As spring rolls around, the dogwood can be moved from the container to a more permanent location in a garden bed, where it can grow to its full potential.
This container consists of:
Redtwig dogwoodSphagnum mossPinecones
Textural contrast with black mondo grass. Texture abounds in this container. The muted tones of black mondo grass and pinecones set off a backdrop of skimmia and dogwood twigs. This is a perfect low-maintenance addition to a small patio that can be enjoyed from the comfort of indoors.
This container consists of:
Dogwood twigsSkimmiaBlack mondo grassPinecones
Year-round bamboo poles. A simple combination of evergreen plants acts as a foundation to timber bamboo poles in this container arrangement. The bamboo poles are a permanent fixture that effectively complement seasonal plantings year-round.
This container consists of:
Timber bamboo polesSkimmiaMountain pepperCoral bells 'Obsidian'
Moss and Phormium. A container planted with Phormium is a great focal point year-round, but the fronds can often get weighted down with snow in the colder climates. We've combatted this by introducing moss-covered twigs to add some support. We then finished off the base by covering up a mass of hens-and-chicks with a light carpet of loose moss. This container now provides interest throughout the winter and can easily be converted to a spring planter.
This container consists of:
PhormiumMossy twigsSphagnum mossHens-and-chicks
Black mondo grass contrasts with ornamental twigs. The dark stain of the fence on this site provided an opportunity for interesting color combinations in this featured container. The dark tones of mondo grass and coral bells complement the surrounding color palette, while bright yellow and red ornamental twigs and an acid-green cypress add vibrant intensity to the arrangement.
This container consists of:
Red and yellow ornamental twigsDwarf golden cypress Coral bellsLeatherleaf sedgeBlack mondo grass
