The winter garden

After the blowsy warmth of Summer and the quietly riotous days of Autumn, Winter slides in upon us, bringing a wealth of mixed feelings. Quiet calm for some, gray and gloomy for others, even to the point of being affected with Seasonal Affective Disorder Syndrome (SAD syndrome).

As the winds strip away the last vestiges of cloth from the branches of tree and shrub, we are left with faithful evergreens and what berries or - even more precious - winter flower there is.

From the design point of view, the winter really lays bare the structure or shape of the garden. Many gardens that look relaxed and are ablaze with colour in the summer, fall short at this time, revealing their inadequacies. It is good, therefore, to plan your garden structure for the winter.

Actually, there's something quite nice about staring out of the window with a hot cup of tea and planning how things might be improved. And on cold but bright days, what better than to get outside and warm up with a bit of hard, but rewarding, work?

To look at the structure of your garden, you must break it down into several distinct levels (links are to relevant design notes):

• Lines of Access
• Still points
• Spatial zones
• House - garden connections

To create a meaningful design, you should try to understand the principles set out in the above design notes. Once you have done that, you can look at the following:

• Structure created by hard landscape (paths, walls, patios, etc.
• Structure created by plants (conifers, evergreens and substantial deciduous plants)
• Infill planting (perennials and smaller deciduous shrubs)
• lawn

Obviously much of the hard landscape structure can be difficult and expensive to alter, but if the garden just doesn't “flow” in the way you feel it should, you might have to look at that.

Dealing with plants, on the other hand, is much more feasible, unless they are of tree-surgeon size! Look at the evergreen structure first of all: is there enough, too much or is it in the wrong place? Evergreens come into their own in the winter and that's when they are most appreciated, especially if they have berries or flower. In the summer, though they should recede to the background as perennials and grasses take centre stage. The exception to this might be a garden of very formal layout, where evergreens (usually clipped or hedges) predominate. Such gardens have their place, but I prefer seasonal variation.

If an evergreen is too dominant all year round, consider how it affects that space, and what it would be like without it. Would the light be better, would the view from a window improve? or would it open things up too much and break down the Spatial zoning between separate areas? Sometimes a bit of careful pruning is all that's needed and don't forget the possibility of lighting: a shrub the makes the path to your front door oppressively dark at night might be transformed with subtle uplighting, to become a stunning feature.

Work through the existing plants, determining their place and purpose - don't be afraid to remove those which are not quite right! Once you have done this, look at the gaps: where do you need structure that you do not already have? You might be able to move smaller plant that are in the wrong place, killing two birds with one stone. If you move conifers or evergreens, don't forget that they transpire (loose water) from their leaves all year round. A spray of 10:1 water/PVA will help hold moisture in whilst recovering from a move. Don't do this if the ground is frozen or waterlogged.

Of course, as you plan your structural planting, you have to also think of the summer plants and how they will relate together. Evergreens make good backdrops, but less so if they are bright or strongly variegated. In the summer you will probably want more room than you've got, so don't go overboard with the structure plants. Balance is what it's all about.