Winter Jasmine cheers us greatly when its shocking yellow (scentless) flowers erupt along the arching and climbing bare green stems of this shrub/vine in winter. Beginning in December it opens flowers continuously until a crescendo is reached in late February. To 9′ tall trained as vine. The lithe stems must be corralled and pegged or twiddled through a lattice. Be patient it will get there. Blooms occur on wood from the previous season. Prune directly after bloom has ended. Fast growing as a scandent ground cover. To 3′ tall x 8′ wide very quickly. Very nice trailing over banks, walls. This form has gold splashed leaves that appear in spring adding another dimension to this plant. Light summer water or none when established. Rich, well drained soil is ideal in full sun to part shade. Winter deciduous. Moderate deer resistance.
Foliage Color: Chartreuse/Gold
Jasminum officinale ‘Fiona’s Sunrise’
Vigorous, hardy twining vine that we love for its chartreuse foliage as well as profuse fragrant white flowers. Best in part shade- will take full shade with leaves a bit greener and less flowers. To 15′ tall and nearly as wide in 6 years. Rich soil to average soil- including clay soil. Takes quite a bit of summer drought when established. Blooms in clusters from June to August. Wonderful vine for contrast. Try it up a pergola with the light lavender blue flowers of a Clematis or an orange rose. Moderately deer resistant. Winter deciduous.
Juniperus ‘Daub’s Frosted’
If you are going to grow a juniper then it better be good. This useful selection has new growth tipped yellow before turning to blue/green. The outside of the plant is always bright and the interior softer and darker- a happy combination. Low and spreading to 18″ high by 4′ across. Excellent drought tolerant easy to grow evergreen for tough sites. Banks, hellstrips, places where you would rather not have the pets potty. Full sun to very light shade. Regular summer water to establish and then none is necessary. Grows faster in better soil- slower where its impoverished. Either way it will grow and thats what you want.
Juniperus conferta ‘All Gold’
Nice, nice creeping juniper for lighting up hillsides or hellstrips. The needles on this low spreading plant are actually closer to chartreuse/lime green than gold. But its a vivid color and the 1′ tall x 5′ wide plant shines. Full sun and well drained soil. Light to little summer water when established. Excellent ground cover for a steep dry bank. Endures extreme cold as well as heat. Tiny flowers turn into blue fruits that contrast nicely with the foliage. Very easy to grow and good looking year round. Moderate deer resistance. Great performance at the Oregon Coast. Tolerates dense clay on slopes. Striking winter and spring appearance that glows from a distance. Well behaved plant. Combine with blue and gray leaved foliage for extra contrast. Hebe pinguifolia ‘Sutherlandii’ or Arctostaphylos pajaroensis ‘Warren Roberts’. You really can’t go wrong with blue/gray and chartreuse foliage. It provides just enough contrast that you can see the texture of each plant but is not an overall jarring contrast. Excellent garden juniper that we’ve all grown to love.
Lamium maculatum ‘Aureum’
This golden form of dead nettle is surprisingly vigorous and makes a glowing small scale ground cover. Mostly evergreen- unless it drops below 15ºF. From early spring to fall a continuous supply of spikes of light purple flowers. Each leaf is decked with a silver chevron. Part shade to full sun with regular summer water. To 6″ tall and 2′ wide when happy. Add a yearly layer of compost to increase vigor. A wonderful plant for lighting up the garden. Moderate deer resistance.
Lonicera ‘Lemon Beauty’
Dramatic yellow foliage with an interior of deep green on the small evenly spaced evergreen leaves of this low spreading shrub. To 3′ x 4′ and forming something of a mound. Spreads low at first- gains height with age. Rich soil with light summer water in full sun to part shade. Very drought tolerant when established. Lights up borders, is easily clipped- without mangling the small foliage. Flowers are tiny and cream colored often followed by translucent purple berries. Sometimes reverts to all green – just cut those reversions cleanly out. Very easy to grow plant for foundation plantings, tough sites, hedges. There is some confusion over the exact species…if you look it up half say L. nitida and half say L. pileata. I’m going to have to go with L. ??. Shrubby honeysuckle.
Lonicera nitida ‘Baggesens Gold’
Useful fine textured golden evergreen shrub that brightens the landscape. This form of box leaf honeysuckle is popular as a sheared hedge but we think it makes a better focal point. The leaves can burn in the hottest locations and conversely turn a bit more green in the shade. Takes any amount of pruning. We have yet to notice flowers or berries on this cultivar. To 4′ x 4′ very quickly. Very drought tolerant when established. Cold hardy to 0ºF when established. May be pruned into any conceivable shape. The tiny leaves escape damage by shearing and the whole plant becomes immensely dense. Prune virtually any time of the year. Supposedly tiny yellow flowers are not very conspicuous but can transform into translucent purple berries if pollinated. Rare to see. Grows quickly.
Lonicera nitida ‘Twiggy’
British selection that is a golden dwarf form of L.n. ‘Baggesen’s Gold’. Low compact dense growing ever-gold shrub that is well scaled for small gardens. To 1′ tall and in a long time 1/1/2′ wide. Full sun to part shade in rich to average well drained soil. Leaf color is most vivid in full sun and hardiness to cold improves there too. We have never seen flowers on this cultivar of box leaf honeysuckle. Easy to grow. In very cold winters the foliage takes on maroon tints. Low hedges, massed as a ground cover.
Luzula sylvatica ‘Aurea’
This! This is one of the coolest sedges for winter displays. It virtually glows in yellow/chartreuse and spreads to form large patches. Adaptable to both full sun (with water) to dense shade. it holds its gold coloring in shade but is more conspicuous in the cold months. In summer it turns lime green and can be site where it fades into the background. In early spring 1′ chartreuse stems display excellently contrasting warm, metallic brown flowers- they are quite showy and come in great quantity. Excellent in rich to average soil with regular summer water. Full sun (but not reflected heat) to dense shade. Very adaptable to dry shade conditions. We love this evergreen workhorse of a sedge that virtually glows. Great en masse or as a simple single glowing patch. This species of woodland sedge is native to Europe. Excellent plant.
Millium effusum ‘Aureum’
Golden Millet grass we love for its bright and shining appearance in shady woodlands. The upright growing then strongly curled leaf blades appear very much like ribbons. In summer stems rise and then arch with little round seeds. The entire plant is the same shade of glowing chartreuse. To 2′ tall and forming slowly expanding clumps. Shade to part shade in rich, well drained soil with light summer irrigation. Avoid blasting hot sun- it will bleach horribly to an ugly appearance. The combination of the soft, ribbon-like foliage and the airy seed heads is a great texture to counter balance the bold appearance of Hosta or Bergenia ciliata. Completely winter deciduous. Seeds around- and seedling come true and are easy to spot and they move very well. Dies away to nothing by midwinter- seldom even have to cut it back.