GET THE BEST FROM COLOURFUL STEMS
We show six of the most attractive stems and bark
AS I admire the wonderful displays offered by colourful winter stems, I am taken back to my time as a horticultural student. The weekly plant identity test at college became progressively trickier in the winter months. During the other seasons the mystery plants were presented with a selection of stems, leaves, fruits or flowers. In winter, the object was to recognise the plant by its stems alone. This was a challenge worth facing as these hardy winter-interest plants were well worth knowing.
It’s plants with brightly coloured stems that give many of our most acclaimed winter gardens that extra dimension in the coldest months of the year. Mottisfont Winter Garden in Hampshire and Cambridge University Botanic Garden are both fine examples of where woody plants with brightly coloured stems and bark are put to good use.
Great value
Thanks to their colourful stems and bark, these plants can claim to offer a full year of interest, making them exceptional value for money. Take Cornus alba ‘Sibirica’, for example. In spring and summer it puts on a show of green foliage and creamy-white flowers, in autumn the foliage turns red, orange and purple, and in winter the naked stems are bright red. In a small garden a plant that can turn its hand to every season certainly earns its place in the border.
Cornus are the most reliable and easy-to-grow plants for winter interest. There are plenty to choose from in this genus, with C. sanguinea ‘Winter Flame’ offering orange, red and yellow stems, C. alba ‘Westonbirt’ providing bright-red stems and C. sericea ‘Flaviramea’ with vibrant lime-green stems.
To ensure a winter display fit for Christmas festivities, pruning is the key to success. Leave cornus unpruned and the old stems will fail to sparkle, and they will soon take up far too much space in a border. It’s the new wood that offers the brightest colours, so coppicing plants in late winter/early spring is a must to encourage a fresh crop of colourful stems.
The rather fabulously named Rubus cockburnianus also requires the same pruning treatment as cornus. This plant offers elegant arching white stems that look as if they have been sprayed with fake snow. It needs space to bend and stretch, and isn’t one to be tucked away in the corner of a garden. It’s the perfect plant to place against an evergreen hedge, as it will stand out even as the light fails in the evening.
Tempting trees
If you’re looking for more height and structure for the winter garden, there are plenty of contenders when it comes to trees with attractive bark. A popular choice is a birch, but which one? If you visit a specialist tree nursery you’ll be
overwhelmed by the offerings.
For a bright-white trunk, I’m tempted by Betula ermanii ‘Polar Bear’, Betula utilis ‘Snow Queen’ or Betula utilis var. jacquemontii. To keep birch trees sparkling white, gardeners often wash the algae off the trunks. This may sound crazy, but it does work. All you need is some warm water and a soft brush to bring the brightness back to your winter whites.
For a coppery bark that has visual impact, Betula albosinensis ‘Kansu’ is worth considering, as is the pinkcoloured bark of Betula albosinensis ‘Red Panda’. Prunus serrula is a popular choice thanks to its polished bark that tempts you to touch it, and Acer griseum with its dark peeling bark is another tree that adds interest all year round.
Using plants with colourful stems not only adds unbeatable winter colour to your garden, but it also provides you with plenty of festive cutting material. The stems of willow and cornus, for example, are perfect for making wreaths and adding a different texture to a Christmas table centre.