Colours of autumn
As we say goodbye to autumn and welcome a (hopefully) wet winter I start to see my garden in a different way. The autumn colour has been a beautiful sight, but once the leaves have fallen, some plants have another layer of interest. In most cases we choose certain plants for the garden because of the colour they provide with their flowers. However, some plants still provide great interest, even after their flowers and or leaves have gone. A popular tree seen in many gardens is the crepe myrtle, valued for its show of summer flowers and beautiful autumn foliage. But during winter it shows off its beautiful bark which improves as the tree matures.
The same can be said for the Cornus alba ‘Siberica’ (red stemmed dogwood), a show of green with red stems in winter providing wonderful colour especially when planted en masse. Other such plants are hydrangeas and Sedum Autumn Joy which also provide great interest with their dry flower heads, long after the main flowering time.
Also many of the old-fashioned roses will provide a great interest after flowering with a display of bright coloured hips. My favourite though would be a Betula nigra (river birch) a very handsome tree (and more dry tolerant than silver birch). As it matures the bark starts to peel showing layers of the salmon pink, brown and white which becomes more apparent when the tree is bare. I have only touched on a few plants that provide winter interest. I’m sure if you have a wander around your garden as well as others in the neighbourhood you will discover the beauty of winter in the garden.
RY
