flowering border plants in winter

Hi all,

Being new to the gardening experience, i am looking for some advice on what flowers to plant now to bring some colour into my garden in the winter. Now I am the sort of gardner that likes to plant something and then leave it to do its thing and now have to do it again a year later(if that makes sense). Basically it is for a border.

So ultimatly what i am looking for is something that flowers in the winter and also something that would look good also the rest of the year even if it means double planting, so at anytime throughout the year there will be something that looks great growing in my borders.

If i can grow from seed and then plant out all the better as I just love watching them little seedlings grow.
I hope this makes sense, or am i being totally unrealistic:dh:

Thanks all

 

Shrubs are about the only thing that will give you winter colour. All the Herbaceous "border" plants will die down in the winter.

You can under plant with bulbs - snowdrops will the earliest, then Aconites, then Daffodils - and some Bluebells if you like. The snowdrops and Aconites should be planted "in the green" - that is to say when they are in flower, so best to buy them early next year and plant immediately - you won't get any colour until the year afterwards. Daffs can be planted a bit later on

For winter colour shrubs you could look at Mahonia (evergreen), Viburnham fragrans, Hamamelis mollis (With hazel) [needs a slightly acid soil].

Oh, and then there are Hellebores (Christmas roses) - they are more like herbaceous plants.

 

Some of the evergreen herbs might look good too. Lavender with its sort of blue/silver/green leaves, Rosemary is ace for its shape and fragrance if nothing else, and there are any number of different Sages, including a purple one which gives good contrast from the usual green.

 

Hi Uulwyn, I have heucheras which keep their colour all winter,they realy are lovely all year round.Thompson and Morgan have a collection for sale now.

 

Heucheras, hellebores for herbaceous. Cornus for winter colour but can get a bit big in an average sized border.

 

"Cornus for winter colour but can get a bit big in an average sized border"

Good choice, very colourfull stems in Winter.

I cut mine right down to "nothing" each spring ... still makes quite a big clump, but in effect only the same size each year

 

I have a Choisia 'Sundance' which just glows in the winter like a patch of sunlight

Some of the Euphorbias start early, E. martinii is a favourite which looks good all winter as the flower buds unfurl and open Jan/Feb

Some grasses can hold all winter and give some variation of form
and some perennials will keep their seed heads if you are not too keen to cut back and 'tidy' eg Sedums & Phlomis russeliana

If you want bright colour it has to be bulbs or winter pansies