Tag Archives: rock garden

Winter Garden Planning

“Winter Garden Color”
Heatherwood Rock Garden

We received a little dusting of snow last night, so I thought I would venture out and try to take some images that would show examples of what could be done to create winter color in the garden. In our Heatherwood rock garden, we have yellows, oranges, reds, greens, blues, and browns. Ground covers, perennials, deciduous shrubs, and evergreen shrubs provide the varying color contrasts.

We are in the process of designing a small “Winter Garden” section for the Yakima Area Arboretum. We hope to create an example that can be shared with the area community.

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Late Morning Sun Brilliance

Rock Garden
Heatherwood Fall

Colors in our rock garden continue to change as fall turns to winter. The ice plant ground cover changes from summer’s light yellow green to winter’s bright red. Several of the evergreens turn to bright yellow and yellow-greens for a winter contrast. Perennials change to deep maroons and different shades of orange-browns. Color continues to persist into the winter. What will next month bring?

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Rock Garden Snapshot

“Rock Garden Infancy”
Heatherwood, Summer

This image is the winding path down from our upper viewing area through the rock garden to the lawn below. We are attempting to create an “alpine-type” rock garden on the slope between two of our lawn areas. It will take several years to fill in to where the plants cover the bark and flow over the edge of the path. The path itself is a winding s-curve through the garden. The evergreens are dwarf versions. Ground cover is placed to fill in around the evergreens and other shrubs.

The rock garden is in its infancy. Last year it was just a sloping, difficult to mow lawn. All it needs now is time, patience, and a little care to mature.

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