Year-round beauty: Adding color and texture with a native landscape

Textures in plants, characterized by their leaf shapes, structures, and sizes, play a pivotal role in adding depth and contrast to your landscape. Whether it's the towering elegance of long-leaved plants or the compact charm of wide leaves, incorporating a diverse range of textures ensures visual interest even when flowers are not in bloom. This balance of textures not only elevates the beauty of your landscape but also infuses it with a sense of uniqueness that endures throughout the seasons.

To further enhance the mosaic-like allure of your outdoor space, consider harmonizing bloom times and colors. By strategically selecting plants that bloom from early spring to late fall, you can create a continuous spectacle of colors and textures that evolve with the changing seasons, ensuring your landscape remains vibrant year-round.

When selecting plants with winter in mind, it's important to consider evergreen trees as well as shrubs that provide a vibrant red color throughout the winter months. For instance, a holly bush is full and lush during winter, providing red berries that can feed the birds and add a splash of color to your landscape. Embrace the beauty of winter by leaving some plants uncut in the fall. Snow-kissed leaves and dormant vegetation can create a picturesque scene, adding depth and texture to your winter landscape while providing essential habitat for beneficial insects. 

Incorporating other structural elements like boulders or Corten steel adds another layer of visual intrigue to your landscape. These elements not only provide contrast in color and texture but also complement the architectural style of your home, seamlessly blending indoor and outdoor aesthetics.

By embracing the diversity of textures in your landscape, you can create an outdoor vista that enchants the eye and nurtures the soul, all while supporting the health of the environment. So, whether you're admiring the vibrant blooms of spring or the serene beauty of winter, your landscape will always be a testament to the artistry of nature.

"We were out of town for the holidays. When we left everything was covered in snow and it was all melted when we returned. When we drove up to the house I could not help but to notice how beautiful the garden looked even in its dormant stage. While I’m excited to see it grow and bloom again as the weather warms, I’m so happy to enjoy it now as it rests." (Gloriana, East Grand Rapids)