Winter Interest IB2DWS - Low Snow Pile with Plants - January 2025

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Four-season gardening has been a goal of mine for a number of years.  Or...at least...considering the impact of the four-seasons on the garden vs. thinking *just* about bloom-time and Summer in the garden.  Conifers are a big part of that Winter Interest season and while my garden LACKED them for many years, I've begun to correct that in the past few seasons.  (I've admitted to making a mistake on conifers and NOW believe in the advice:  "Conifers should come first.")

The original IB2DWs bed (closer to the garage) is a continuous work-in-progress.  I started with some Karl Foerster Feather Reed Grasses and have added things over the years.  

This section typically gets piled high with snow during the Winter; as it is a natural place to put snow that is shoveled off the driveway.  I've posted photos of this area piled high with snow before: here's a post from one-year-ago (January 2024) showing that the snow was piled to the top of the Weeping Norway Spruce tree.   Here is January 2022 when the Weeping Norway Spruce tree was NOT planted.  And, here is February 2021 showing the snow pile.  

This year, we haven't received as much snow (just yet), so the IB2DWs bed is showing-off a little bit with a low-layer of snow.  In the photo below, you can see some of the plant material and how it is working with the white snow.

Besides the Weeping Norway Spruce, you can also see the Bald Cypress tree (on the right), a couple of Serendipity Alliums (in front of the Spruce), some Hakonechloa grasses (behind the Spruce), those Karl Foerster Grasses (along the back) and the Agastache Blue Fortune seed heads (on the left).  

Winter interest in the garden with Conifers, ornamental grasses and perennials

What is buried under the snow are a couple of groundcover plants and the Cardoon (which...I'm not sure is still viable).  

This scene is TOTALLY different with the Norway Spruce than without it.  Something to think about as I plant elsewhere this growing season.  

Location: Downers Grove, IL, USA

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