scent and turn reddish in winter. Small white flowers resembling blueberry blossoms develop into red berries that persist into winter. In addition to their fruiting interest, berry-laden trees and shrubs attract birds such as cardinals, which are like living Christmas ornaments — a joy to watch at any time of year.
Interesting Bark Many deciduous trees and shrubs have multicolored and or peeling bark that stand out dramatically in a winter landscape once the screen of leaves is gone. The dogwood family has three species of deciduous, suckering shrubs that have dramatic winter coloration. The red-barked or tartarian dogwood (Cornus alba ‘Sibirica’) is a rapid-growing, multi-stemmed, suckering, deciduous shrub noted for its brilliant red stems in winter. For best coloration remove oldest
stems each year. It grows to a maximum size of 4 feet to 7 feet tall on erect, usually unbranched stems. The red osier dogwood (Cornus stolonifera ‘Flaviramea’, sometimes sold as C. sericea ‘Lutea’), is worthy for its canary yellow stems, lending it great ornamental value in the winter landscape. It’s not too shabby in fall either when the foliage turns rich shades of orange and red. It has an upright, spreading habit that matures at between 5 feet and 8 feet tall and wide. It can become invasive, spreading by stolons. For best color, prune it severely in early spring. Bloodtwig dogwood (Cornus sanguinea ‘Midwinter Fire’) lives up to its name. The yellow winter stems are tipped with red so they really do look on fire. In fall, the foliage turns golden yellow. Cut back the stems to within a few inches of ground each spring for finest color. It grows to 5 feet tall and 6 feet wide
over eight years. Because these dogwood species are not particularly attractive in the summer, plant them at the back of the perennial border so they’re hidden when the perennials are starring, and can then take the lead role in winter when the perennials go underground. Another stunner in the winter garden is the coral-red bark of the Japanese maple Acer palmatum ‘Sango Kaku’. The bark color of the young growth is intense against the snow, making an image you won’t soon forget. In spring you may notice our native downy serviceberry (Amelanchier arborea) clothed in white blossoms along the shoreline. Bring it into your garden and enjoy its year-round interest beginning with the spring flowers, blue-black berries in summer, the orange and red blaze of fall color and the light-gray striations on the silvery bark in winter. Michael
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