Hellebore
With its deep green foliage and radiant flowers, hellebore makes us smile when it's cold and frosty outside. The Christmas rose treats us to large petals radiating out from a beautiful central crown from January all the way until April. Due to its preference for sheltered, sunny places, you can easily arrange a few hellebores to brighten up a summer patio in winter.
Winter jasmine
This climbing plant blooms from December with beautiful light-scented yellow flowers. Prune your winter jasmine when it has finished flowering in the spring: this will stimulate flower buds to grow again, so that a new sea of flowers will appear the following winter.
Hazel
You may associate hazel with Easter, but this beautiful plant starts to put on its show of flowers much earlier in the year. Hazel is a tree, often pruned into a shrub, but left alone it can grow up to six meters high. Depending on the variety, it blooms in January, February and March, showing off yellow wisps full of flowers.
Camellia
This shrub is beautiful even before its flowers come, with its dark green, shiny leaves. But then, while many outdoor plants are still in hibernation, camellia reall comes into its own. White, purple or red flowers bloom all over the bush, bringing vibrancy to a winter garden or patio. Check what type of camellia you are dealing with, because the planting and flowering time can differ.
Winter violets
With their bright colours and smiling petal faces, winter violets are an excellent remedy for the winter blues, bringing a cheerful atmosphere to the garden, balcony and patio in the evening. For best results, plant a group of winter violet plugs close together, to create a bushful of fun paintbox colours.
Mahonia
This shrub is the sunshine in your winter garden: mahonia shrub blooms with an abundance of golden yellow flowers. Petals begin to emerge early on winter and continue throughout the season. What's more, the flowers on this plant smell wonderful.
MORE WINTER INSPIRATION
Curious for even more inspiration to enjoy the outdoors? Take a look at how to create a colourful winter garden, enjoy the most beautiful winter accessories or be inspired by our winter file. What does your winter garden, terrace or balcony look like? Share it with us via Instagram or Facebook using the hashtag #thejoyofplants.
