The winter walk from Harlow Carr
Words: Russell Watkins (Horticulturist, Harlow Carr)
The winter walk at Harlow Carr is a popular area in the garden, and is actually a walk through two borders specially designed for winter interest.
Although we call it the winter walk, there is plenty of interest in other seasons as well.
The planting plan below is a sample taken from the winter walk - it is not an exact replica but you could say it is a 'best of the winter walk'. All the plants chosen for the plan will do very well in a selection of situations with the exception of continually dry conditions.
Planting plan - 2m x 1m
Key to plan
1. Carex morrowii 'Fisher's Form' x 7
2. Daphne bholua 'Jacqueline Postill' x 1
3. Helleborus x hybridus 'Harvington Smokey Blues' x 3
4. Erica x darleyensis f. albiflora 'Silberschmelze' x 11
5. Erica erigena f. aureifolia 'Irish Dusk' x 3
6. Microbiota decussata x 3
7. Perovskia atriplicifolia 'Blue Spire' x 4
8. Heuchera 'Obsidian' x 6
9. Hamamelis x intermedia 'Livia' x 1
10. Helleborus foetidus x 3
11. Iris foetidissima x 3
12. Ophiopogon planiscapus 'Nigrescens' x 6
13. Pittosporum tenuifolium 'Tom Thumb' x 1
14. Erica carnea 'Challenger' x 7
15. Cornus alba 'Sibirica' x 1
16. Helleborus x hybridus 'Harvington red' x 3
17. Helleborus niger 'White Christmas' x 5
The plants chosen for this plan will provide interest all year round, but are particularly beautiful in autumn and winter. Here at Harlow Carr we use small early-flowering spring bulbs such as Scilla and Iris to fill in the gaps and extend the season into spring.
The bed is planned so that within a year or two it should be relatively low maintenance as the groundcover plants mesh together to reduce the need for weeding.
Around early to mid-March, depending on your location, prune the Cornus back to a strong pair of buds near ground level. This allows a season of fresh growth to mature before winter. The Erica will benefit from a light prune as the flowers fade. This will keep them compact for future years.
Depending on your location and the severity of the winter, it may be necessary to protect the Pittosporum, certainly while still young, as we lost many of our plants in winter 2010 due to the prolonged spells of cold.