Wishing you a peaceful and happy holiday season.
- Natalie
Let's add some color to winter!
This is the longest week of the year, and not just because kids are counting down the days to Christmas break. It's dark - the shortest day length of the year is this week. These short days, especially in northern areas, seem to go by at a snail's pace.When there is daylight, you should be able to enjoy some color in the garden, and I don't mean holiday decorations. There's no better plant for winter color than the redtwig dogwood.
Arctic Sun® Cornus sanguinea has bright red, orange and yellow stems that enliven the landscape with or without snow. The fall foliage (right) is nice, too.
It's a compact (3-5') plant that's a good fit for most landscapes. Largely trouble-free, Arctic Sun® works well as a hedge or in rain and cutting gardens. It can stabilize banks, too. C. sanguinea has OK deer resistance but isn't quite as good as C. sericea. Still, it's a really useful plant that's hardy to USDA Zone 4 and grows in full sun or part shade.When it's dark and dreary we need some color to keep things moving. Ancient cultures, particularly in northern latitudes, knew this. They all came up with a reason for a big party around the winter solstice, and that party typically included some evergreens and fire. And when their cultures changed, they kept the light going with Christmas trees and candles.
We still need evergreens and other color in winter. Red twig dogwood is an obvious choice; Physocarpus and Heptacodium are more subtle options for winter interest. Berries are great, too - Viburnum, Callicarpa and Ilex verticillata have lots of personality in colder months.A bonfire is a fun way to include that traditional fire element into your midwinter celebration, but if that's not in the cards maybe a flaming desert like cherries jubilee can be arranged. That would surely make you popular at your holiday dinner!
Have a wonderful holiday!
Plant of the Week is written by Jane Beggs-Joles.
