WINTER WARMERS
Inject life into your garden this winter, says Martyn Cox
FEW gardens look or even smell good in winter. The best that many have to offer on the visual front is an expanse of bare soil or a forlorn evergreen in a distant corner, while damp air, soggy surfaces and decaying plant matter combine to make a pungent aroma that results in some keeping the back door firmly shut until spring.
Yet our gardens don’t have to look drab over the months to come. A great way of injecting some life is to introduce a few seasonal shrubs, whether that’s in beds, in mixed borders or as specimens within a lawn. Compact types will thrive in containers, either on their own or as part of an arrangement.
Some shrubs provide a single memorable highlight thanks to their textured bark, brightly coloured stems, berries, fruit or dramatic foliage, while others have an architectural form that will provide structure and sculptural interest. A few boast more than one of these attributes, helping them to really earn their keep.
Of course, there are plenty of shrubs that possess gorgeous flowers to lift the winter blues. A large number of these carry a scent that lingers wonderfully on a still day. These fragrances have sweet, fruity, citrusy or spicy notes, and vary from light to powerful enough to be picked up from a great distance.
Among the best-scented flowering shrubs are evergreen, architectural mahonias with their yellow plumes, and sarcococca, whose tiny white flowers exude a scent similar to vanilla. Other shrubs worth growing include viburnums, daphnes, shrubby honeysuckles, acacias and winter sweet (Chimonanthus praecox).
For my money, the most desirable shrubs for scent are witch hazels, or hamamelis – a tribe of deciduous shrubs from east Asia with delicate flowers that appear on bare stems from January to February. Their filament-like petals come in shades of yellow, red, orange and purple, and vary in length and width.
Dogwoods, or cornus, are renowned for their colourful stems that are hidden by green or variegated leaves for much of the year. Once these fall they reveal a mass of upright shoots in shades of red, yellow, green and near black. Some are even two-tone. Several willows are equally vibrant.
If you’re looking for fruit and berries, then cotoneasters, skimmias and low-growing gaultheria really deliver.
Euonymus europaeus ‘Red Cascade’ is a wonderful spindle, and once its red leaves have fallen this large bushy shrub continues to add interest with pendent clusters of pinkish-red fruit.
Make sure you don’t relegate scented shrubs to the back of the border or a distant corner. Position these plants close to the back of the house or alongside paths in the front garden, allowing you to enjoy their fragrance every time you step outdoors or even when you open the windows.
If you have a large space, you could consider creating a dedicated winter garden, allowing scented shrubs to rub shoulders with those grown for their vibrant stems, ornamental bark or berries. Plug the gaps with colourful grasses, ground-covering foliage plants and flowering perennials, such as bergenias or hellebores.
Those needing more inspiration should visit a garden famed for its
winter displays, such as Dunham Massey in Cheshire, Waddesdon Manor in Buckinghamshire and Hampshire’s Sir Harold Hillier Gardens. Cambridge University Botanic Garden boasts a one-acre cold-season gem.
The key to ensuring that winterinterest shrubs really stand out is to cover the ground with a dark mulch. A 3in (7½cm) layer of leafmould, garden compost or mushroom compost is perfect, but make sure you leave a gap around the stems of shrubs to prevent the bark softening, leading to rotting.
Another option is grow shrubs in large containers filled with soil-based compost, such as John Innes No2, or an ericaceous equivalent if they’re acid lovers. For the biggest impact, arrange a group of plants in a prominent position while they’re in flower, and move them out of the way once the blooms fade.
There are endless container recipes, but for a tried-and-tested arrangement use Cornus sanguinea ‘Midwinter Fire’ as the centrepiece, underplanting with black dragon grass (Ophiopogon
planiscapus ‘Nigrescens’) and Tiarella
‘Iron Butterfly’. Add snowdrops or yellow crocuses for extra splashes of colour.