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Ireland (Zone 9a)    Aphria Oct 16, 2018 6:30 AM CST |
| Can anyone suggest some colourful foliage plants for winter interest please? I want to put them in pots and our climate equates to your zone 9a I believe. I bought a hosta a few weeks without realising that it would lose its lovely leaves! Thank you. |
Pittsburgh, PA MiraDee Oct 21, 2018 6:03 PM CST |
| Do you mean place in pots indoors? I don't know much about other zones... I'm in zone 6. Coleus grows well outdoors during our summers and I've grown them indoors during the winter. The leaves are very colorful... they flower but the flowers aren't that striking. |
Name: Cheryl North of Houston TX (Zone 9a)              ShadyGreenThumb Oct 21, 2018 6:15 PM CST |
| Indoors or out clematis not only have some with striking leaf pattern but they bloom also. There are some variegated poinsettias out now that will do well in bright light. It would look pretty after it blooms and can be planted outside. Life is short, Break the rules, Forgive quickly, Kiss slowly, Love Truly, Laugh uncontrollably, And never regret anything that made you Smile. |
Name: Luis Hurst, TX (Zone 8a)     luis_pr Oct 21, 2018 6:39 PM CST |
| Oakleaf hydrangeas |
Name: Sally central Maryland Seriously addicted to kettle chips.            sallyg Oct 21, 2018 7:17 PM CST |
| Hardy geraniums- I have this one here, it turns maroon in fall but keeps its leaves all winter http://www.missouribotanicalga... i'm pretty OK today, how are you? ;^) |
Name: Tofi Sumatera, Indonesia         tofitropic Oct 21, 2018 7:40 PM CST |
for winter container? how about ornamental kale...? I miss growing them, but now in tropics they just keep on greeny. |
Name: Sally central Maryland Seriously addicted to kettle chips. sallyg Oct 21, 2018 7:57 PM CST |
| Variegated Liriope- this hasn't very good pictures but it would give you green and white leaves and should look pretty good through winter. Where I live it is almost evergreen but the previous years leaves dry up and get ratty by end of winter so we cut them off and a new bunch comes out each spring https://www.monrovia.com/plant... i'm pretty OK today, how are you? ;^) |
Ireland (Zone 9a) Aphria Oct 22, 2018 2:31 AM CST |
Thank you for the suggestions! I did pick up some ornamental kale a few weeks ago and they have lovely colour. I also have this hydrangea, I'm not sure what type it is but it was called Glam Rock. The colours aren't as vivid as I had hoped but I've been feeding the soil to give it some more acidity as I believe this might affect the colour of the blooms next year. Anyone come across this one before?  I got this bergenia that has a nice red colour to the leaves so I'm hoping that the colour will last through the winter.  And I also got this hellebore.  I planted a few cyclamen plants too that have some lovely pinks. I really love plants with variegation on the leaves which is why I picked up the hosta. I'll have a look out for the clematis handle hardy geraniums  |
Name: Sally central Maryland Seriously addicted to kettle chips. sallyg Oct 22, 2018 5:44 AM CST |
nice ones you've got there  i'm pretty OK today, how are you? ;^) |
Ireland (Zone 9a) Aphria Oct 22, 2018 7:09 AM CST |
luis_pr said:Oakleaf hydrangeas I just had a look online at Oakleaf Ruby Slippers, it's beautiful. I think that might be my next purchase  |
Name: Luis Hurst, TX (Zone 8a) luis_pr Oct 22, 2018 8:15 PM CST |
| Hint: the more morning sun that they get, the better Fall foliage display. Of course, weather, soil minerals, temps, soil moisture, etc all those things affect the Fall foliage but definitely the more sun, the better the red, oranges and purples. These pigments become visible when photosynthesis and chlorophyll production are reduced. I have Runy Slippers too and it produces nice foliage. Very compact after 4-5 years. I have it in the north side of my home under a tree. It skipped flower production once and had a limited flower production on another year... but it is due to erratic Texas Winters: warm winter temps made the plants break winter dormancy and then, the temps plummeted, which zapped flower buds but did not kill any of the stems. Hint: My other oakleaf hydrangeas in the south side of my home are more protected by the house and, in mild years, they will keep the leaves until leaf out time, so whatever colors they have in the Fall, they stay on thru March when the leaves do not drop in winter. Mulch well and water deeply when temps go below freezing; it seems to help for my oakleafs once established. You should be fine in Zone 9a. Enjoy. |
Ireland (Zone 9a) Aphria Oct 23, 2018 3:45 AM CST |
| Thanks so much for the info! So, I'm planning to keep it in a container. Our back garden is North facing so the bottom of the garden gets full sun in summer. We tend not to get very cold winters but we don't get very warm summers either. So, when you say that the foliage colour responds best with morning sun, do you think it will respond well at the bottom of my garden (bearing in mind we rarely get weeks of hot sunny weather so it won't bake!). I can move it to beside the wall of the house in winter where it will be protected. |
Name: Luis Hurst, TX (Zone 8a) luis_pr Oct 23, 2018 5:50 AM CST |
| Sorry, I meant to say that hydrangeas typically require morning sun only and that the Fall foliage does best the more sun that the shrub gets. For example, a shrub in morning sun might put a better show than a shrub in Full but bright shade or a shrub in 1-2 hours of morning sun. The leaves are what are sensitive to too much sun. Oakleaf hydrangeas are the second most sun tolerant hydrangea so it may be able to handle the conditions that you describe. Observe how it does and transplant it if it does not work out. You will not be the last person to do so! If it gets too much sun, the leaves in direct contact with the sun will suffer but the leaves underneath will remain green. With mopheads, sun-scorched leaves look yellow/sand ish; leaves inside the bush remain dark green. If you see the leaves browning from the edges inwards, that is just lack of water in the soil, not too much sun. |
Name: Tiffany purpleinopp Opp, AL 🌵🌷⚘🌹🌻 (Zone 8b)     purpleinopp Oct 24, 2018 8:42 AM CST |
| Pansies (Viola,) Snapdragons (Antirrhinum,) and Dianthus barbatus, and Camellias are great winter-interest plants in my area. Ruscus stays green and has the most interesting TINY blooms over winter. Gardenias are evergreen & occasionally throw out some blooms over winter. Succulents like ghost plant (Graptopetalum paraguayense,) Graptosedum hybrids, Sempervivum, various Sedums, and hardy species of Opuntia, are also options. Narcissus bulbs bloom over winter in this area. 👀😁😂 - SMILE! -☺😎☻☮👌✌∞☯🐣🐦🐔🐝🍯🐾 The less I interfere, the more balance mother nature provides. 👒🎄👣🏡🍃🍂🌾🌿🍁❦❧ 🍃🍁🍂🌾🌻🌸🌼🌹🌽❀☀🌺 ☕👓 The only way to succeed is to try. |
Ireland (Zone 9a) Aphria Oct 24, 2018 9:48 AM CST |
| @purpleinopp Thank you! I have a double snapdragon that has been blooming since spring and it's still going strong and creating buds. It's been down to between 2 & 4C some nights so far but I was thinking it wouldn't survive the frost...am I wrong? I've also been admiring some plants at a neighbour's house that are still blooming and I think they're Camellias so I need to check those out. Would the succulents survive our wet winters? I planted some alliums, grape hyacinths and narcissus a few weeks ago and some of the shoots are coming through...I mixed them all up but maybe it's the narcissus that's sprouting if they can come up in the winter? Thanks |
Name: Tiffany purpleinopp Opp, AL 🌵🌷⚘🌹🌻 (Zone 8b) purpleinopp Oct 24, 2018 10:09 AM CST |
| Happy to suggest. There are multiple types/species of snapdragons. The last time I had some, they bloomed over winter but did not make it through the heat of summer. Unfortunately, I don't know exactly what kind I had. Succulents may need some protection from rains if they occur right before a run of frosty nights. I keep my hardy ones in a mini garden that is under a porch roof so I can control the water. If your winter is as wild as it is where I am, the cold comes in spurts, with warm spells in between. I only water succulents during a warm spell when a few above-freezing nights are predicted. I try to do it often enough so they do not get actually completely dry. Check out some of the discussions in mini garden forum if the idea intrigues! ;) Sempervivums are hardy to about Z3 or 4, so should be stalwart in a pot in a much warmer location. 👀😁😂 - SMILE! -☺😎☻☮👌✌∞☯🐣🐦🐔🐝🍯🐾 The less I interfere, the more balance mother nature provides. 👒🎄👣🏡🍃🍂🌾🌿🍁❦❧ 🍃🍁🍂🌾🌻🌸🌼🌹🌽❀☀🌺 ☕👓 The only way to succeed is to try. |
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