9 Winter-Blooming Plants to Add a Little Color to Your Landscape
If bare branches and brown, lifeless grass has you down every winter, not to worry. There are some beautiful winter-blooming plants you can add to your garden to help add a little brightness to the darkest season of the year.
But finding those rare winter blooms doesn’t have to be a huge challenge, according to C.L. Fornari, garden expert and author at GardenLady.com. With a little forethought, you can ensure that there’s always something going on in your garden. Here’s how to pick the perfect blooming plants for winter.
Tips for Choosing a Winter-Blooming Plant for Your Garden
Want to find that perfect late bloomer for your garden? Try these tips to find the right plant.
Consider your gardening zone
You want to choose plants that will thrive in your particular region—as some plants can take the frost, while others will need the warmer climes in the southern states in order to thrive in the winter. So make sure to check out your gardening zone before you start selecting plants.
Don’t forget about foliage—especially if you’re in an area where it snows
You don’t have to stick with flowers to add some color to your winter landscape. “Color can come from bark and foliage as well as flowers,” Fornari says. And make sure you keep in mind what you’ll be able to see—especially if you live in an area where winter snows happen regularly. “A plant with red stems or yellow needles will be more visible than any low-growing flower.”
Look to fall and spring blooming plants
Many plants that bloom in the fall or spring may bloom late or early enough to provide some color in the winter months, too—especially if you live in the warmer garden zones. Think bulbs like hyacinth and daffodils for a potential peek in late winter or fall-bloomers like calendula that can extend into the winter months.
Leave interesting dried blooms and foliage
Too late to plant something new in your garden? You can simply leave some of the spent blooms and foliage (think hydrangea heads and grasses) in your garden. “If you leave dried grasses or the stems and seed pods of perennials untouched, they often look magical when frost or snow hits them,” Fornari says.
Hellebores
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Often called Christmas or Lenten roses, these shade-loving blooms are a favorite of Fornari’s for winter color. “In many areas, hellebores are the best. They are hardy in many parts of the country—zones 3 to 9, depending on the variety—and are very shade tolerant. Because the flowers are composed of sepals (modified leaves) that look like flower petals, the blooms last a long time.”
Growing zones: 3 to 9
Snowdrop
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Snowdrops are a favorite winter flower, with blooms appearing in February and March and lasting for a few months. They’re planted as bulbs in the fall, and are an easy-to-grow option that’ll come back year after year, as long as you don’t disturb the earth where they’re planted.
Growing zones: 3 to 7
Crocus
Another very early herald of spring, the delicate crocus flowers can start popping their heads up in late February to brighten up your garden with shades of purple, yellow, and white.
Crocus bulbs are a favorite treat of squirrels, so when you’re planting them, you can sprinkle red pepper flakes or even coffee grounds in the soil around the bulbs as a deterrent—or place chicken wire over the area to prevent them from digging up your bulbs.
Growing zones: 3 to 8
Camellia
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Camellias have lush green foliage that helps perk up a barren winter landscape. But the plant’s large, rose-like blooms in shades of white, pink, purple, red, and yellow are the real showstopper all winter long. These perennials are hardy in the warmer parts of the U.S., in growing zones 7 to 9.
Growing zones: 7 to 9
Camellias are a shade-loving perennial, so it’s best to plant it under the shade of a tree or in another spot where it will find respite from hot afternoon sun.
Witch Hazel
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Witch hazel is more than just a natural skin-care ingredient—it can be the centerpiece of a lovely winter garden. These hardy shrubs can grow huge—up to 30 feet tall—and produce pretty, eyelash-like yellow flowers from the fall into the winter.
Growing zones: 3 to 9
Pansies
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In the warmer growing zones, pansies will bloom all winter long, but these pretty annuals can also brighten up the late fall and early spring where it’s cooler. Some varieties of pansy (look for options labeled “winter” or “ice”) do well, even in frosty conditions.
Growing zones: 4 to 10
Winter Jasmine
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If you’re looking for something dramatic for your winter garden, winter jasmine may be just what you want. It can be grown as a shrub or a vine, and vine cultivars can grow up to 15 feet long. The plants produce bright yellow flowers that can last all winter long.
Growing zones: 6 to 10
Winter Heath
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This evergreen plant produces blooms in pink, cream, or white as winter is ending, and it grows up to a foot tall, so it’ll peek out over all but the biggest snowdrifts. Fun fact: It’s a cousin of Scottish heather.
Growing zones: 4 to 9
Alyssum
A popular annual plant, also known as Lobularia, alyssum produces a sea of tiny white flowers. Some varietals (such as Snow Princess) bloom during the colder months.
Growing zones: 5 to 8
