Greenworks Plants Group: Exploring Winter Plants

Our resident plant expert, Bhronwhyn Dean, graciously organized a lunch-and-learn focusing on plants with winter interest in our recent “Greenworks Plants Group” session. Drawing from inspiration in her own garden, Bhronwhyn brought in a vase filled with fern cuttings, flowers, woody branches, and shrubs for the day. We discussed the idea that ‘winter interest’ can include far more than color, including ornamental bark, color of stems, winter outlines/tracery, grasses, winter flowers, texture, fruits / berries, and fragrance as part of our discussion.

Notable plants included Mexican Orange (Choisya ternata), with a fruity fragrance, Hellebore (Helleborus), with delicate flowers and dark green texture, Oregon Grape (Mahonia aquifolium) with a purple/bronze winter leaf color, and Beauty Berry (Callicarpa americana), with bright purple berries that contrast most winter landscape colors. We also focused on the variety of unique ferns including Holly Fern (Cyrtomium falcatum) with thick glossy fronds and Hart’s Tongue Fern (Asplenium scolopendrium) with a nice matte texture and color.

Many folks in our office have enjoyed getting together during lunches and talking about the many facets of the landscape architecture industry. Designing and planning for thriving plant communities plays critical role in the success of a planned landscape, and we strive to continue to broaden our plant knowledge and inspiration. Tune in next time for a recap of our early spring bloom field trip to Elk Rock!