The best plants for winter garden colour

Winter-flowering heather adds long-lasting colour and texture. It looks fantastic in pots with pink, white or purple flowers. Additionally, some heathers, like Erica x darleyensis, grow in neutral or slightly alkaline soil, not just acidic types.

Also known as chaenomeles, this is a hardy woody shrub. It possesses thorny branches that bear cup-shaped flowers in winter aswell as early spring.

This plant has lovely yellow flowers and are suited to growing underneath deciduous trees and shrubs. They prefer rich, moist soil.

Often called the Christmas Rose, hellebores may flower in midwinter. H. orientalis varieties offer white, green and deep red blooms.

Cyclamen bloom from autumn to spring in red, pink and white shades. Their silver-marked leaves add extra visual appeal. Grow C. hederifolium or C. coum outdoors. Unlike C. persica, these hardy types tolerate frost and cold.

Winter pansies fill pots and window boxes with bright colour. Place them where they can be seen from indoors.

Witch hazel displays wiry blooms along bare branches. Hamamelis ‘Diane’ has red flowers, while ‘Pallida’ produces scented yellow blooms.

Viburnums bring colour and scent. Try evergreen V. burkwoodii or deciduous V. x bodnantense ‘Dawn’ with fragrant pink flowers.

Grow Cornus for colourful stems in winter. C. alba ‘Sibirica’ glows red. ‘Flaviramea’ offers lime-green bark. Both add bold structure.

Also called Oregon grape, mahonia bears tall yellow flower spires above bold evergreen leaves. It brightens shade effortlessly.

Prunus subhirtella ‘Autumnalis’ produces pale pink flowers from late autumn to early spring. It brings softness to bare spaces.

Snowdrops often bloom first in the new year. Galanthus nivalis suits woodland borders and naturalised planting beneath trees. Rare yellow snowdrop varieties exist, though they are expensive and highly collectable.

Winter jasmine scrambles over walls and arches. It produces bright yellow, star-shaped flowers and grows well on trellises.

Early daffodils bloom in winter. Try Narcissus ‘Rijnveld’s Early Sensation’ from January or ‘February Gold’ for slightly later colour.

Crocuses mark the end of winter. Their upright, cup-shaped flowers look lovely in pots, lawns, or sunny borders.

Also known as Glory of the Snow, C. luciliae blooms even through frost with star-shaped blue or pink flowers.

Daphne shrubs offer intensely fragrant winter flowers. D. odora and D. bholua grow best near entrances or paths.

Winter-flowering clematis like C. cirrhosa ‘Freckles’ produce bell-shaped blooms with speckled petals. Train them up walls or trellis.

Algerian iris blooms in winter with violet flowers. Yellow and white markings brighten the petals and offer subtle fragrance.

Sweet box produces creamy winter flowers and strong scent. Its black berries and evergreen leaves add year-round garden value.

This deciduous shrub features drooping racemes of winter flowers. It’s pollinator-friendly and grows up to 4 metres tall.