
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, January 19, 1994                   TAG: 9401190025
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV-3   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: Joe Hunnings
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

HARDY PLANTS GIVE BEAUTY THROUGH WINTER

Year after year, we plan our gardens with an eye toward spring and summer. Too little consideration is given to the long, winter months and to achieving year-round beauty in the landscape.

Many plants display winter attributes that are every bit as attractive as their summer characteristics. Though coniferous evergreens provide green beauty throughout the cold season, several deciduous trees and shrubs also have striking bark and colorful twigs and fruit.

Here's a selection: RIVER BIRCH Betula nigra)

This native birch is an excellent alternative to the white-barked birches that are extremely susceptible to bronze birch borer. River birch is highly resistant to this insidious pest.

The reddish-brown to peach-colored, flaky bark produces a warm effect against a white background. The bark of "Heritage" tends to peel more and displays a salmon color. The tree can be grown on most soils and tolerates both wet and dry sites.

A fast grower, river birch can reach 30 to 40 feet in height over 20 years. \ REDOSIER DOGWOOD Cornus sericea)

This native shrub adds a shock of color to the winter landscape. Young stems are bright red in the cold months, becoming more intensely colored toward spring. To encourage the growth of young stems with the brightest colors, cut back older stems to the ground in early spring.

Yellow Twig Dogwood or "Flaviramea" (Cornus sericea). This is similar to redosier dogwood, except the winter twigs are bright yellow.\ \ WINGED EUONYMUS or BURNING BUSH (Euonymus alatus)

The flaming-red shrub seen so frequently in the fall has winged stems and twigs that are quite attractive, especially after a snow when they catch and hold the glistening flakes. Under optimum conditions, this species can grow to a height and spread of 15 to 20 feet. Dwarf forms also are available.\ \ WINTERBERRY (Ilex verticillata)

Winterberry forms an oval rounded shrub that is excellent for mass effect or the shrub border. The sexes of this shrub are separate, so fruits are produced only on female plants, and only if a male plant is close at hand.

After the leaves drop (usually after the first frost), a profusion of bright-red berries is exposed. The berries will remain bright red well into winter or until eaten by birds. "Sparkleberry," a 1987 Styer Award winner, holds its berries until early spring.\ \ BAYBERRY (Myrica pensylvanica)

Bayberry is found growing naturally close to the ocean, and thus is highly salt tolerant. It thrives in poor, sterile, sandy soils, but is extremely adaptable to a variety of soil types.

The plant is deciduous to semi-evergreen, so it may hold its leathery leaves through winter in some parts of Virginia. Clusters of gray-blue berries are borne in great quantities along the stems of the female plants. These berries are used in making bayberry candles.\ \ CHINESE or LACEBARK ELM (Ulmus parvifolia)

This tough, durable tree is tolerant of poor soils and extremes in pH. During the winter, its magnificent bark is exposed - a mottled combination of gray, green, orange, and brown. Do not confuse this beautiful specimen with the inferior Siberian elm pumila), which does not possess the desirable traits of the Lacebark elm.

Joe Hunnings is the Virginia Cooperative Extension Service agent for agriculture in Christiansburg. If you have questions call the Montgomery County extension office at 382-5790.

by CNB