{"id":124,"date":"2020-06-23T17:57:30","date_gmt":"2020-06-23T21:57:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/chapter\/seasonal-plants\/"},"modified":"2023-06-29T18:25:09","modified_gmt":"2023-06-29T22:25:09","slug":"seasonal-plants","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/chapter\/seasonal-plants\/","title":{"raw":"Seasonal Plants","rendered":"Seasonal Plants"},"content":{"raw":"<div class=\"textbox textbox--learning-objectives\"><header class=\"textbox__header\">\r\n<p class=\"textbox__title\">Learning Objectives<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/header>\r\n<div class=\"textbox__content\">\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Describe seasonal plants common to the horticulture industry.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\nPlanning combinations of woody and herbaceous plants with different life cycles and high visual impact generates year round interest in exterior and interior plantings. When visual interest is planned for one period such as early summer, borders and containers can have a poor appearance the rest of the year. Optimizing the use of grasses, bulbs, perennials, annuals, biennials, shrubs, climbers, and trees can provide a succession of plant forms, colours, textures, and habits throughout the seasons. In temperate regions, year round interest is maximized by selecting plants with at least two, and even three or four seasons of interest.\r\n\r\nConifers and broadleaf evergreens shrubs are often used for year round colour and spatial structure. For example, <em>Taxus cuspidata<\/em> 'Capitata' (upright yew) provides reliable winter colour and a framework that can be enhanced with other shapes, textures, and colours. On the other hand, a planting of broadleaf evergreens such as <em>Skimmia japonica<\/em> (Japanese skimmia) offers winter colour and structure as well as showy spring flowers and colourful fruit in the autumn. Distinctive plant shapes and the bark of trees such as <em>Cryptomeria japonica<\/em> (Japanese cedar) and <em>Morus alba<\/em> 'Pendula' or species with persistent fruit like <em>Sorbus aucuparia<\/em> (European mountain ash) also contribute structure and winter interest.\r\n<h2>Practice<\/h2>\r\nRecognize woody plants for winter interest.\r\n\r\n[h5p id=\"84\"]\r\n\r\nSome deciduous shrubs and trees like <em>Caryopteris<\/em> x <em>clandonensis<\/em> (bluebeard), <em>Cercidiphyllum japonicum<\/em> (katsura), and <em>Rhus typhina<\/em> (staghorn sumac) have interesting branching patterns throughout all seasons. The bark and buds of <em>Ribes sanguineum<\/em> (flowering currant, winter currant), <em>Magnolia<\/em> x <em>soulangeana<\/em> (saucer magnolia), <em>Liriodendron tulipifera,<\/em> and <em>Styrax japonicus<\/em> (Japanese snowbell, Japanese snowcone) provide winter interest and interesting buds forecast the appearance of foliage and flowers. Climbers with variegated or textured foliage and colourful flowers like <em>Actinidia kolomikta<\/em> (actinitdia) and <em>Campsis radicans<\/em> (trumpet vine) also contribute vertical structure. View the images seasonal plant characteristics available at this link to the <a href=\"https:\/\/plantdatabase.kpu.ca\/#gsc.tab=0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em>KPU Plant Database<\/em> [New Tab]<\/a>.[footnote]<a href=\"https:\/\/plantdatabase.kpu.ca\/#gsc.tab=0\">https:\/\/plantdatabase.kpu.ca\/#gsc.tab=0<\/a>[\/footnote]\r\n\r\nThe appearance of plants before, during, and after flowering is an important consideration for planning seasonal interest. For example, the herbaceous specimen plant <em>Gunnera manicata<\/em> (gunnera, giant rhubarb) provides a bold shape and texture for at least half to perhaps three quarters of the year. With planning, the eye-catching winter stems and seed heads of grasses and perennial species such as <em>Pennisetum alopecuroides<\/em> (fountain grass), <em>Pennisetum setaceum<\/em> 'Rubrum' (red fountain grass), and <em>Perovskia atriplicifolia<\/em> (Russian sage) can serve as distractions from seasonal voids. Layering various heights of ground covers, bulbs, annuals and perennials under and around woody shrubs and trees allows a succession of foliage shapes, sizes, textures, and colours to become prominent as the year progresses. In this way, emphasis is placed on year round interest and not only the seasonal show of flowers. A planting calendar is a useful tool for working out the succession of flowers and colour palettes as well as other planting design features. Figure 8.1 shows an example of a basic planting calendar that allows the planner to visualize the times of the year that are most colourful and interesting and those that could use additional development.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_123\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"688\"]<img class=\"wp-image-123 size-full\" title=\"Figure 8.1 Sample planting calendar\" src=\"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/318\/2020\/06\/Planting-Calendar.jpg\" alt=\"Figure 8.1 Sample planting calendar\" width=\"688\" height=\"379\" \/> <em><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Figure 8.1 Sample planting calendar<\/span><\/em>[\/caption]\r\n\r\nAs the succession of spring bulbs like <em>Anemone blanda<\/em> (Greek windflower, blue wood) and <em>Hyacinthus<\/em> cvs. (hyacinth) finish flowering and foliage fades, deciduous shrubs such as <em>Spiraea<\/em> x <em>vanhouttei<\/em> (bridal wreath spirea) and an array of herbaceous annuals, biennials and perennials come into flower in early and mid spring. Examples of spring blooming perennials include <em>Aubrieta<\/em> x <em>cultorum<\/em> (common rock cress), <em>Brunnera macrophylla<\/em> (Siberian bugloss), <em>Papaver orientale<\/em> (oriental poppy), <em>Pulmonaria saccharata<\/em> (lungwort), and <em>Dicentra spectabilis<\/em> (bleeding heart). From late spring and early to mid summer, the flowers and foliage of broadleaf evergreen shrubs such as <em>Daphne cneorum<\/em> (garland daphne) and herbaceous species like <em>Thymus pseudolanuginosus<\/em> (woolly thyme), <em>Heuchera<\/em> cvs. (coralbells, alumroot), and <em>Phlox paniculata<\/em> (common phlox) take prominence. The progression of seasonal foliage and bloom continues in mid to late summer and through autumn with perennials such as <em>Actaea simplex<\/em> Atropurpurea Group (cimicifuga), <em>Aster<\/em> spp. (common aster), <em>Astrantia major<\/em> (masterwort, astrantia), <em>Coreopsis<\/em> spp. &amp; cvs. ( coreopsis), <em>Geranium<\/em> spp. &amp; cvs. (geranium), and <em>Gaillardia<\/em> cvs. (blanket flower). The texture and seed heads of perennials like <em>Hylotelephium spectabile<\/em> (autumn joy sedum, stonecrop), and grasses such as <em>Andropogon gerardii<\/em> (big bluestem), <em>Calamagrostis<\/em> x <em>acutiflora<\/em> (feather reed grass), and <em>Molinia arundinacea<\/em> 'Skyracer' (tall moor grass) extend the visual interest from late autumn into winter. Year round interest is fulfilled by evergreens and the flowers of winter blooming shrubs and perennials. View images of the seasonal plant characteristics available at this link to the <a href=\"https:\/\/plantdatabase.kpu.ca\/#gsc.tab=0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em>KPU Plant Database<\/em> [New Tab]<\/a>.[footnote]<a href=\"https:\/\/plantdatabase.kpu.ca\/#gsc.tab=0\">https:\/\/plantdatabase.kpu.ca\/#gsc.tab=0<\/a>[\/footnote] Read more about seasonal plant combinations at this link to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gardenia.net\/gardens\/seasons\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em>Gardenia Seasonal Garden Ideas<\/em> [New Tab]<\/a>.[footnote]https:\/\/www.gardenia.net\/gardens\/seasons[\/footnote]\r\n<h2>Practice<\/h2>\r\nRecognize plants for seasonal interest.\r\n\r\n[h5p id=\"85\"]","rendered":"<div class=\"textbox textbox--learning-objectives\">\n<header class=\"textbox__header\">\n<p class=\"textbox__title\">Learning Objectives<\/p>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"textbox__content\">\n<ul>\n<li>Describe seasonal plants common to the horticulture industry.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Planning combinations of woody and herbaceous plants with different life cycles and high visual impact generates year round interest in exterior and interior plantings. When visual interest is planned for one period such as early summer, borders and containers can have a poor appearance the rest of the year. Optimizing the use of grasses, bulbs, perennials, annuals, biennials, shrubs, climbers, and trees can provide a succession of plant forms, colours, textures, and habits throughout the seasons. In temperate regions, year round interest is maximized by selecting plants with at least two, and even three or four seasons of interest.<\/p>\n<p>Conifers and broadleaf evergreens shrubs are often used for year round colour and spatial structure. For example, <em>Taxus cuspidata<\/em> &#8216;Capitata&#8217; (upright yew) provides reliable winter colour and a framework that can be enhanced with other shapes, textures, and colours. On the other hand, a planting of broadleaf evergreens such as <em>Skimmia japonica<\/em> (Japanese skimmia) offers winter colour and structure as well as showy spring flowers and colourful fruit in the autumn. Distinctive plant shapes and the bark of trees such as <em>Cryptomeria japonica<\/em> (Japanese cedar) and <em>Morus alba<\/em> &#8216;Pendula&#8217; or species with persistent fruit like <em>Sorbus aucuparia<\/em> (European mountain ash) also contribute structure and winter interest.<\/p>\n<h2>Practice<\/h2>\n<p>Recognize woody plants for winter interest.<\/p>\n<div id=\"h5p-84\">\n<div class=\"h5p-iframe-wrapper\"><iframe id=\"h5p-iframe-84\" class=\"h5p-iframe\" data-content-id=\"84\" style=\"height:1px\" src=\"about:blank\" frameBorder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" title=\"Drag the image to the correct plant name. Click the icon to show a tip.\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Some deciduous shrubs and trees like <em>Caryopteris<\/em> x <em>clandonensis<\/em> (bluebeard), <em>Cercidiphyllum japonicum<\/em> (katsura), and <em>Rhus typhina<\/em> (staghorn sumac) have interesting branching patterns throughout all seasons. The bark and buds of <em>Ribes sanguineum<\/em> (flowering currant, winter currant), <em>Magnolia<\/em> x <em>soulangeana<\/em> (saucer magnolia), <em>Liriodendron tulipifera,<\/em> and <em>Styrax japonicus<\/em> (Japanese snowbell, Japanese snowcone) provide winter interest and interesting buds forecast the appearance of foliage and flowers. Climbers with variegated or textured foliage and colourful flowers like <em>Actinidia kolomikta<\/em> (actinitdia) and <em>Campsis radicans<\/em> (trumpet vine) also contribute vertical structure. View the images seasonal plant characteristics available at this link to the <a href=\"https:\/\/plantdatabase.kpu.ca\/#gsc.tab=0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em>KPU Plant Database<\/em> [New Tab]<\/a>.<a class=\"footnote\" title=\"https:\/\/plantdatabase.kpu.ca\/#gsc.tab=0\" id=\"return-footnote-124-1\" href=\"#footnote-124-1\" aria-label=\"Footnote 1\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[1]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The appearance of plants before, during, and after flowering is an important consideration for planning seasonal interest. For example, the herbaceous specimen plant <em>Gunnera manicata<\/em> (gunnera, giant rhubarb) provides a bold shape and texture for at least half to perhaps three quarters of the year. With planning, the eye-catching winter stems and seed heads of grasses and perennial species such as <em>Pennisetum alopecuroides<\/em> (fountain grass), <em>Pennisetum setaceum<\/em> &#8216;Rubrum&#8217; (red fountain grass), and <em>Perovskia atriplicifolia<\/em> (Russian sage) can serve as distractions from seasonal voids. Layering various heights of ground covers, bulbs, annuals and perennials under and around woody shrubs and trees allows a succession of foliage shapes, sizes, textures, and colours to become prominent as the year progresses. In this way, emphasis is placed on year round interest and not only the seasonal show of flowers. A planting calendar is a useful tool for working out the succession of flowers and colour palettes as well as other planting design features. Figure 8.1 shows an example of a basic planting calendar that allows the planner to visualize the times of the year that are most colourful and interesting and those that could use additional development.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_123\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-123\" style=\"width: 688px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-123 size-full\" title=\"Figure 8.1 Sample planting calendar\" src=\"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/318\/2020\/06\/Planting-Calendar.jpg\" alt=\"Figure 8.1 Sample planting calendar\" width=\"688\" height=\"379\" srcset=\"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/318\/2020\/06\/Planting-Calendar.jpg 688w, https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/318\/2020\/06\/Planting-Calendar-300x165.jpg 300w, https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/318\/2020\/06\/Planting-Calendar-65x36.jpg 65w, https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/318\/2020\/06\/Planting-Calendar-225x124.jpg 225w, https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/318\/2020\/06\/Planting-Calendar-350x193.jpg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 688px) 100vw, 688px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-123\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><em><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Figure 8.1 Sample planting calendar<\/span><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>As the succession of spring bulbs like <em>Anemone blanda<\/em> (Greek windflower, blue wood) and <em>Hyacinthus<\/em> cvs. (hyacinth) finish flowering and foliage fades, deciduous shrubs such as <em>Spiraea<\/em> x <em>vanhouttei<\/em> (bridal wreath spirea) and an array of herbaceous annuals, biennials and perennials come into flower in early and mid spring. Examples of spring blooming perennials include <em>Aubrieta<\/em> x <em>cultorum<\/em> (common rock cress), <em>Brunnera macrophylla<\/em> (Siberian bugloss), <em>Papaver orientale<\/em> (oriental poppy), <em>Pulmonaria saccharata<\/em> (lungwort), and <em>Dicentra spectabilis<\/em> (bleeding heart). From late spring and early to mid summer, the flowers and foliage of broadleaf evergreen shrubs such as <em>Daphne cneorum<\/em> (garland daphne) and herbaceous species like <em>Thymus pseudolanuginosus<\/em> (woolly thyme), <em>Heuchera<\/em> cvs. (coralbells, alumroot), and <em>Phlox paniculata<\/em> (common phlox) take prominence. The progression of seasonal foliage and bloom continues in mid to late summer and through autumn with perennials such as <em>Actaea simplex<\/em> Atropurpurea Group (cimicifuga), <em>Aster<\/em> spp. (common aster), <em>Astrantia major<\/em> (masterwort, astrantia), <em>Coreopsis<\/em> spp. &amp; cvs. ( coreopsis), <em>Geranium<\/em> spp. &amp; cvs. (geranium), and <em>Gaillardia<\/em> cvs. (blanket flower). The texture and seed heads of perennials like <em>Hylotelephium spectabile<\/em> (autumn joy sedum, stonecrop), and grasses such as <em>Andropogon gerardii<\/em> (big bluestem), <em>Calamagrostis<\/em> x <em>acutiflora<\/em> (feather reed grass), and <em>Molinia arundinacea<\/em> &#8216;Skyracer&#8217; (tall moor grass) extend the visual interest from late autumn into winter. Year round interest is fulfilled by evergreens and the flowers of winter blooming shrubs and perennials. View images of the seasonal plant characteristics available at this link to the <a href=\"https:\/\/plantdatabase.kpu.ca\/#gsc.tab=0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em>KPU Plant Database<\/em> [New Tab]<\/a>.<a class=\"footnote\" title=\"https:\/\/plantdatabase.kpu.ca\/#gsc.tab=0\" id=\"return-footnote-124-2\" href=\"#footnote-124-2\" aria-label=\"Footnote 2\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[2]<\/sup><\/a> Read more about seasonal plant combinations at this link to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gardenia.net\/gardens\/seasons\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em>Gardenia Seasonal Garden Ideas<\/em> [New Tab]<\/a>.<a class=\"footnote\" title=\"https:\/\/www.gardenia.net\/gardens\/seasons\" id=\"return-footnote-124-3\" href=\"#footnote-124-3\" aria-label=\"Footnote 3\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[3]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n<h2>Practice<\/h2>\n<p>Recognize plants for seasonal interest.<\/p>\n<div id=\"h5p-85\">\n<div class=\"h5p-iframe-wrapper\"><iframe id=\"h5p-iframe-85\" class=\"h5p-iframe\" data-content-id=\"85\" style=\"height:1px\" src=\"about:blank\" frameBorder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" title=\"Plants for Seasonal Interest\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr class=\"before-footnotes clear\" \/><div class=\"footnotes\"><ol><li id=\"footnote-124-1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/plantdatabase.kpu.ca\/#gsc.tab=0\">https:\/\/plantdatabase.kpu.ca\/#gsc.tab=0<\/a> <a href=\"#return-footnote-124-1\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 1\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-124-2\"><a href=\"https:\/\/plantdatabase.kpu.ca\/#gsc.tab=0\">https:\/\/plantdatabase.kpu.ca\/#gsc.tab=0<\/a> <a href=\"#return-footnote-124-2\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 2\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-124-3\">https:\/\/www.gardenia.net\/gardens\/seasons <a href=\"#return-footnote-124-3\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 3\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><\/ol><\/div>","protected":false},"author":90,"menu_order":2,"template":"","meta":{"pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":[],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[60],"license":[],"class_list":["post-124","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry","contributor-michelle-nakano"],"part":118,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/124","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/90"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/124\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":415,"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/124\/revisions\/415"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/118"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/124\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=124"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=124"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=124"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/plantidentification\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=124"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}