Today we’re visiting with regular GPOD contributor Carla Z. Mudry in Malvern, Pennsylvania.
The garden in winter is magical all on its own. It doesn’t have the lushness of a full summer garden awash in colors and blooms, or the refreshed newness of spring awakening full of new greens and springtime bulbs, or even the golden hues of fall, but it has sparkling, frozen magic. Its bare form and structure are different than in other seasons, but it has a stark beauty interspersed with the glorious greens of evergreen shrubs and trees.
It is so worth developing a four-season garden. Even in winter, like all dreams of spring, I love my garden in winter.
Walk around your garden this winter. See you all in the spring!
Owl sculptures in the garden, dressed up in the snow
In winter, the bones of the garden—tree trunks and evergreen shrubs—are everything.
A garden bench under a holly tree (Ilex opaca, Zones 5–10) has received a soft cushion of white snow.
A bright red birdhouse looks all the brighter in the winter landscape.
A holly branch with bright red berries creates a classic winter vignette.
The delicate colors of the stems of these shrubs go unnoticed in the summer, but they take center stage against the snow.
The leaves of Rhododendron act as mini-thermometers, hanging down and curling tight in the coldest weather and opening up again when it warms up.
The flower heads of smooth hydrangea (Hydrangea arborescens, Zones 3–9) fade to brown and hang on all winter.
Of course, conifers are the kings of the winter garden, looking all the more beautiful when topped with fresh snow.