Create your own Winter garden
Whilst many gardens retreat into dormancy during winter, a well-planned garden can offer an enchanting display of colour, texture, and structure to delight you throughout winter. Whether you have a large outdoor space or a small urban courtyard, creating a winter garden ensures your landscape remains vibrant, even during the coldest months. Here’s how you can transform your garden into a seasonal sanctuary.
The Beauty of Winter Gardens
Winter gardens are designed to shine when most plants are hibernating. They rely on a combination of evergreen foliage, bark textures, colourful berries and early-flowering plants to create visual interest. Importantly, they also provide shelter and food for wildlife, supporting biodiversity throughout the colder months.
Choosing plants to create your winter garden
The key to creating a captivating winter garden is selecting plants which thrive in the UK’s winter climate and offer year-round appeal. Here are just some of our favourites:-
Evergreen shrubs to provide the backbone of a winter garden; for example,
Japanese holly (Ilex crenata) which is perfect for neat hedges or topiary.
Holly (Ilex aquifolium) to add glossy green foliage and bright red berries.
Yew (Taxus baccata), another classic choice for structural hedging or standalone features.
Striking bark and stems to create winter focal points in your garden, such as,
Silver Birch (Betula utilis ‘Jacquemontii’) with its bright white bark which adds elegance and stands out on even the gloomiest of winter days.
Dogwood (Cornus alba) has vibrant red or orange stems which bring standout colour.
Tibetan Cherry (Prunus serrula) which is known for its glossy, mahogany-coloured bark.
Winter-Flowering plants to brighten the season with winter blooms; we suggest,
Winter Jasmine (Jasminum nudiflorum) to give a cascade of yellow flowers on arching stems.
Gorgeous Hellebores, also known as the Christmas Rose, which bloom in shades of white, pink, and purple.
Snowdrops (Galanthus), to give delicate white flowers which signal that spring is not far away.
Berries and fruit are important for adding colour and also for providing a vital food source for wildlife. Consider planting
Skimmia japonica, compact low growing shrubs with clusters of red berries.
Pyracantha (Firethorn), which is known for its abundant red, orange, or yellow berries or
Cotoneaster, a low-maintenance shrub which is loved by birds.
If you are looking for inspiration for your own winter garden, the UK boasts several stunning winter gardens which showcase how to create year-round beauty in the garden. Here are some notable examples:
Anglesey Abbey Winter Garden (Cambridge, Cambridgeshire)
The winter walk at RHS Garden Wisley (Woking, Surrey)
Cambridge University Botanic Garden (Cambridge, Cambridgeshire)
Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (Edinburgh, Scotland) and
Sheffield Park and Garden (East Sussex)
Caring for Your Winter Garden
The garden is relatively low maintenance in winter, but these are some of the jobs you can get on with,
• Pruning: Tidy up deciduous plants and trim evergreens for shape.
• Mulching: Protect roots from frost with a layer of organic mulch.
• Wildlife Support: Install bird feeders, leave seed heads for birds and insects and ensure that wildlife has water available.
Conclusion
Creating a winter garden in the UK is a rewarding way to keep your outdoor space alive with colour and life during the darker months. With thoughtful planning and a mix of hardy plants, structural elements, and wildlife-friendly features, you can design a garden that is not only a feast for the eyes but also a haven for nature. Whether you’re starting from scratch or enhancing an existing garden, now is the perfect time to begin planning for a winter wonderland right at your doorstep.