Natalie’s winter garden blog 2026. Foraging for colour, leaf litter, Gingko profile, best tree planting, garden design ideas for the winter garden, and pruning.
In the depths of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer— Albert Camus
We’re in the midst of shorter days. It’s a wonderful time to slow down, enjoy the brilliant colour of deciduous trees and early spring flowers, and plant something new.
Foraging for colour
There’s much to like about the winter garden. Plants that bravely flower, often with a scent. Snowdrops are the first signs that spring’s around the corner. It’s a perfect time to plant Daphne, Cyclamen, Viburnum, Camellia, Bergenia, Hostas and Wintersweet, Primula and Polyanthus.
Leaf litter is a wonderful thing
It’s hard not to be annoyed every now and again, by the untidy appearance of fallen leaves (leaf litter). There is however good reason to look upon leaf litter in a more favourable light. Leaves are a natural mulch, they smother weeds, help to keep the soil moist, while also reducing erosion (the soil being blown away). Raked leaves act as a mulch when placed around trees, shrubs and flowers. Be careful to keep leaf litter away from tree trunks to ensure good ventilation. I leave about 10cms clear between the mulch and trunks.
Most importantly as we move more and more towards sustainable gardening, leaf litter provides a diverse and very lively habitat full of insects, worms and beneficial fungi. Birds just love foraging in leaf litter which is to me at least is a minor annoyance. I’ve found that planting small shrubs, perennials and low hedging around garden beds helps to keep the leaf litter within bounds.
Ginkgo, a living fossil
Deciduous trees put on quite the show of brilliant golds, oranges and reds. They provide shade in summer, and when we need more light in winter they helpfully shed their leaves. And finally, in autumn their leaves fall to the ground providing us with garden mulch.
The Ginkgo also known as the Maidenhair tree (thanks to its unique fan-shaped leaves), is a beautiful addition to the garden. The trees are pyramidal in shape, with the leaves turning a brilliant yellow in autumn. It’s thought they date back to the Middle Jurassic period about 170 million years ago, and they’re widely known as a living fossil. Although the Ginkgo’s a fairly common sight in gardens, the tree is listed as an endangered species, and is at risk of extinction in the wild. Perhaps planting a Ginkgo is an option for your garden?
Some of the best trees to plant during the cooler months
Native trees
Native trees are often overlooked when we’re thinking about new plantings. New Zealand’s native trees are unique and excellent for introducing form, texture and structure to our gardens. As an added bonus many encourage birds with their nectar. These are some of our best native trees:
Rewarewa (Knightia excelsa) – attracts birds
Nikau palm – attracts bees
Ponga fern (Wheki-Ponga) – attracts birds
Totara (Podocarpus totara) – attracts birds
Kauri (Agathis australis) – a mighty tree
Titoki (Alectryon excelsus) – attracts birds
Tawa (Beilschmiedia tawa) – attracts birds
Kowhai (Sophora microphylla) – attracts birds
Rimu (Dacrydium cupressinum) – attracts birds
Black Beech (nothofagus solandri) – attracts birds
Northern Rata (Metrosiderous robusta) – attracts birds
Akeake (Dodonaea viscosa) – windy-hardy small tree
Ramarama (Lophomyrtus bullata) – attracts birds
Pittosporum species – attracts birds.
Fruit trees
It’s a perfect time for planting fruit trees, but don’t forget fruit trees need sun. You’ll need to find a sunny and relatively sheltered spot for them to flourish. Think carefully about the fruit trees you’ll most benefit from having. What fruits do you buy the most? Don’t forget some fruit trees need pollinators and instead of one, you’ll be planting two trees. Here are some of my favourite fruit trees:
Blueberries
Citrus: mandarins and lemons
Plums: Greengages, Omega, Luisa and Doris
Heirloom apples like Monty’s Surprise
Grapes
Feijoas
Avocados
Peach: Peacherine,
Pears.
Deciduous trees
The Ginkgo is not the only tree brandishing beautiful colour during winter. Here are some others:
Pin oak
Ornamental Crabapple
Liquidamber
Smoke tree
Japanese maple
Claret Ash.
Did you know?
In the 1600s, tulips in the Netherlands were so prized their bulbs became extremely valuable with one bulb selling for almost 130,000 euro, roughly about $260,000 (NZ). It led to tulip mania which caused a sizeable socio-economic crash.
Garden design ideas for the winter garden
The winter months are good for stepping back from garden work and thinking about garden design. How, and where can you add interest? It’s exciting thinking about garden design. Gardens are ever evolving and that’s what makes gardening so fascinating. Here are some suggestions to get you started:
Add a surprise element with garden art, furniture and sculptures.
Attract birds with bird feeders and bird baths.
Trees give your garden structure and visual interest. Make sure feature trees are the focal point. Plant near entranceways or seating areas, and don’t forget about your garden view from inside the house. What windows do you look out at the garden the most?
Don’t forget branches add interest. Plant the paperbark maple (Acer griseum) for its peeling bark, the red-twig dogwood (Cornus sericea) for its striking red stems, the Ramarama for its berries and foliage, or deciduous magnolias for their elegant branch structure.
The wind adds movement to your garden. Ornamental grasses fill this brief well.
Mulch, shingle or crushed shell pathways complement evergreen plantings beautifully.
Strategic lighting works exceptionally well by highlighting tree silhouettes.
Planting early blooming bulbs in clusters; snowdrops and crocus create a wonderful feature.
Berry plants add colour and attract birdlife during the winter months. Plant Viburnums, Cotoneaster and Crabapples.
Prune and prune
Apple and pear trees for more fruit
I’ve mentioned before that I find pruning creative and rewarding in equal measures. Pruning’s easier in winter when bare branches make it easier to see exactly what’s happening. Stonefruit (peaches, plums, apricots) trees tend to be pruned into the vase shape which has an open centre. Apples and pears (pipfruit) usually have a central trunk. Don’t forget the three Ds of pruning: dead, diseased and damaged wood. Always cut back to healthy wood and a bud, or the next small outward facing branch.
Most apples and pears have spurs (nobbly growths) which will bear next season’s fruit. Treat them a little like gold and try not to remove too many. However there are some exceptions. Varieties like Fuji, Granny Smith and Royal Gala instead bear their fruit on the ends of shoots. Light pruning will encourage branching which will create more fruiting tips. You only need to cut branches back by three or four buds.
The ideal central leader tree will have tiers of branches. These tiers should be spaced out to around 60cm apart to encourage sunlight and good airflow. Horizontal branches tend to be more fruit bearing and have less vigorous vegetative growth. Too much new vegetative growth will divert strength away from the tree which will instead focus on producing fruit. Occasionally, especially if you have an old tree you may need to prune more severely to encourage rejuvenation.
Roses for an abundance of flowering
Prune roses now. The three “Ds” also apply to roses: remove dead, damaged and diseased wood first. Then look for opening up the centre of the bush and shortening up remaining stems. Put all prunings straight into the bin to prevent any pests and diseases from making a comeback. Newly pruned roses benefit from a spray, but wait for a few days after pruning, before applying a copper and oil spray.
Gardening gems:
It’s the ideal time to plant or prune roses
Divide and plant strawberries
Add bird feeders, baths and houses to your winter garden. They’re wonderful at bringing life and movement.
Mulching will instantly your garden into something resembling tidy. Don’t forget to keep stems and trunks clear of mulch.
Look for diseased and dead wood on trees and shrubs and prune.
Plant lilies.
Plant out seedlings for spring cut flowers: scabiosa, cornflowers, dianthus, stock, sweet peas and delphinium
Plant out winter veggies.
Keep on top of weeds. It’s much easier when they’re smaller and the soil is soft. To pull them up.
On a closing note, the Greater Wellington Regional Council’s working hard to eradicate plants threatening the diversity of our parks, reserves and gardens. Keep an eye out for Banana passionfruit. New sites have been located in Pukerua Bay and Raumati. There are also juvenile Climbing spindleberry plants in Waikanae. If you spot any of these plants you can feel very virtuous by pulling them up without any hesitation. I was interested to also read the Council’s undertaking drone spraying at Pukerua Bay using a two metre wand to target agapanthus on the spur.
Don’t forget that no matter how gloomy or cold the day, head out into your garden and forage, or plant new trees. Discover colour, early spring growth, and foliage plants that come into their own in winter. What can you pick and put into a vase? It’s not long now until spring will be on its way!
Natalie Quirke
Garden designer
Dip Hort, Dip Hort Mgt, NDH
Comments