Winter Gardening
If you live in an area of the country with harsh winters, you may be resigned to a dead and dreary yard and garden during the cold months. But it doesn’t have to be that way. There are plenty of plants that look great all season long, even in the northernmost reaches of the country. Check out our favorites, and see if you can get some of these cold-weather wonders in the ground before winter’s chill sets in.
Blue Ice Bog Rosemary
Blue Ice bog rosemary's unique silvery-blue foliage looks good in all seasons, but this evergreen ground cover also delights with a shock of pink bell-shaped blooms in early spring. Perfect for rock gardens and moist soils, it will attract birds and bring interest to the yard all year long.
Related: 7 Popular Ground Covers to Enhance Any Yard
Carsten’s Wintergold Mugo Pine
This dwarf pine variety turns from green to gold when cold weather arrives. In fact, the colder the climate, the more intense its color becomes. Deer-resistant and easy-care, this shrub will look good in every season in Zones 2 through 7.
Related: 10 Plants Sure to Stop Deer in Their Tracks
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Weeping Norway Spruce
Many weeping ornamentals lose their leaves in cold weather—but not the weeping Norway spruce! With its unusual shape and showy cones, this evergreen makes a great accent in the garden and provides rich green in all four seasons.
Related: 10 of the Best Trees for Any Backyard
flickr.com via F.D. Richards
Tiny Buttons Stonecrop
This evergreen succulent creates a lush and attractive carpet that thrives year-round. Small white flowers attract butterflies in early summer, and the plant's blue-green foliage may take on a reddish hue in colder months. Easy to care for in full sun, this little wonder packs a lot of life in its compact height.
Siberian Carpet Cypress
For evergreen ground cover in cooler climates, try one of the Siberian carpet cypress varieties. These short and colorful shrubs turn a coppery purple in winter, greening up again when warmer weather arrives in spring.
Related: The Invincible Yard—12 Ideas for Lazy Landscaping
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Frosty Fire Dianthus
This ground-hugging variety of dianthus is evergreen and cold hardy in Zones 2 through 8. Its gray-green foliage erupts in summer with flowers, making it a wonderful filler both in the garden or in pots.
Related: 10 "Zero Dollar" Garden Hacks
Dwarf Globe Blue Spruce
If you’re looking for a distinctive shade of evergreen color, dwarf globe blue spruce delivers. Hardy in Zones 2 through 8, this densely branched little conifer has blue needles that become more brilliant in summer. It makes a wonderful low hedge, but it's even more outstanding when planted in combination with different species.
Related: Living Fences—11 Boundary-Setting Solutions
Pink Pussy-toes
Adapted to Zones 2 through 9, pink pussytoes provides an evergreen mat of tiny silver-gray leaves. In late spring, it spikes deep pink, fuzzy flowers. It’s a slow grower and requires little water once established, so this cold-hardy beauty is a breeze to care for in any season.
Related: 5 (Nearly) Kill-Proof Houseplants
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Snowdrops
Snowdrop bulbs are happiest with cold or moderate winters. Plant the delicate white flowers in the fall and enjoy them throughout the cold months, come spring they'll go dormant.
Christmas Rose
Christmas rose, a variety of hellebore, is a pest-resistant evergreen perennial. Find it a shady location with space to grow, and soon you'll be noticing its white flowers.
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