The cut stems also look effective in a glass vase and remain in good condition for several weeks.Ĭornus sericea ‘Flaviramea’ is the green-leaved dogwood with greenish-yellow stems that is often planted with Cornus alba ‘Sibirica’. The long, wand-like stems of this cornus are flexible and can be cut and made into Christmas wreaths or garlands for decoration. This may seem harsh but your plant will respond with glorious straight wands that grow quickly and light up the garden the following winter. To encourage vigorous growth, and fine upright stems you need to prune hard in early spring, to just a little above ground level. I’ve never been that positive about its other attributes, but having really noticed its crimson autumn leaf colour last fall I have completely changed my mind. The variety which produces the most intensely coloured stems is the plain green-leaved Cornus alba ‘Sibirica’, this has glowing scarlet winter bark on the vigorous upright stems. The red-barked dogwood, Cornus alba is perhaps the best known shrub grown for its winter stems, and there are several varieties with coloured and variegated foliage which add colour to the garden throughout the summer. Grown as shrubs these stooled willows (in other words cut back to just above ground level each spring) are lovely planted along side water where their glowing wands are reflected in still, cold water.
The cut stems of willow will even root in water if you leave them in a vase for a few weeks. Willows are excellent plants for wet and heavy soil, and they grow easily from rooted cuttings. Although the scarlet willow is a large, graceful tree it can also be grown as a shrub if the stems are cut back to a little above ground level each spring.
The glowing twigs of the willow, Salix alba ‘Britzensis’ are a familiar sight against blue winter skies. In a container I love it underplanted with the black grass-like perennial Ophiopogon planiscarpus ‘Nigrescens’ Although this maple grows into a small tree with age it is slow, and therefore suitable for the small garden and perfect for a large pot. The leaves turn a soft canary-yellow in autumn, before they fall to reveal the brilliant coral- red young stems. This is a slender, upright plant when young, with fine twigs carrying delicate, light-green foliage. Of the latter Acer palmatum ‘Sango-kaku’ (‘Senkaki’), the Coral bark maple is the one to grow if you want colourful stems. Many varieties of cornus, the dogwoods, are outstanding, as are some salix, willows, and some varieties of Acer palmatum, the Japanese maples. Those days have a certain mystery around them, but those magic wands in the garden still cast their spell. What’s more, they excel on what a friend once described as “those Tupperware bowl days” when the sun never breaks through, and we live in an opaque greyness. Hidden beneath the leaves during summer, their colourful stems positively glow in the low winter light, their colours becoming stronger as the days grow colder. Magic Wands: cornus, salix, acer varieties spell winter colour
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