Winter dreariness doesn't have to be a fatality! Any good gardener knows that many plants will help you to overcome it. Shrubs with colorful blooms, perennials, biennials or bulbs, don't hesitate to plant these plants that will bring you color and cheerfulness.
Dapper climbers
We no longer need to introduce honeysuckle: perfect for quickly adorning a wall, this carefree plant will delight you with its sweet fragrances. Choose the species "fragrantissima" commonly called winter honeysuckle which produces a multitude of small cream-colored flowers from December to March.
Winter jasmine (Jasminum nudiflorum) can also be trained on a trellis. Its small bright yellow corollas appear before the leaves on the bare branches. Contrary to the other jasmines with a strong perfume, its flowers are odorless. If it is well exposed it will bloom from December to March.
Some clematis are very early and bloom as early as February; this is the case of Clematis cirrhosa with decorative bronze tinted foliage that offers pale yellow or cream flowers sometimes tinted with light red touches.
Shrubs covered with flowers
Very elegant, camellias are covered with flowers for many months, allowing for staggered flowering. There are more than 250 species in the genus, so the choice is vast. The Camellia "Bonanza" with its large red peony-like flowers will bloom from October to February. Some of the larger Camellias reticulata will be used at the bottom of a bed; they can reach 4 meters in height. The "Australia" variety is very vigorous and offers salmon pink flowers from February. The same goes for the Camellia sasanqua whose variety Mineno-yuki will open the ball of blooms from October with its small white flowers.
If Camellias grow well in your garden, it is because your soil is acidic! Take the opportunity to plant heathers that will form carpets of white, pink or purple flowers in the heart of winter. Here again, there are many varieties to choose from... Create your own decor to ensure uninterrupted flowering from November to May.
The undisputed star of the garden in winter, the Mahonia blooms for a long period. At the top of the shrub with prickly foliage appear spectacular clusters of bright yellow flowers. Its fragrance is reminiscent of lily of the valley. Plant several varieties to stagger the blooms from December to April.
For its bewitching scent with slightly spicy notes of hyacinth, plant a Daphne odora near the house. The color of the flowers can vary according to the species from pure white to deep purple. Very original and not very common in our gardens, this plant deserves to be better known!
Let's finish with a classic: the viburnum. Its flowering goes through the winter without a hitch. It is an easy plant that grows by itself. Choose the hybrid "bodnantense" for its delicate perfume and its subtle bloom.
