Taylor’s Weekend Gardening Guide to the Winter Garden: Plants that offer color and beauty in every season of the year - The author suggests that you plan your garden with winter in mind. She explains which plants need special care and how to care for them. She shows how to improve plant survival, where and how to plant more sensitive species to avoid damage from snow or frost, how to protect plants from frozen soil, etc.

Buchanan organizes her book by plants that stay green over winter (evergreens), have showy bark or twigs, bear fruits or berries, and by grasses and first flowers. Within each group, she suggests several plants and describes them (look, height, light requirements, growing zone, and attraction points). About a quarter of the plants are shown in photographs. The book is a great reference for anyone interested in creating a year-round attractive garden.

For those who live in cold climates, or those who want to be assured of some year-round interest from their plantings, this is a good source of ideas. The Winter Garden lists (with many color photographs) plants of all types and sizes which remain interesting in winter for their color, shape, berries, or texture. It’s a good book to read for gardeners who are suffering from let down when the blooming season passes. I found this bit of advice useful: plan any landscape as if it were a winter landscape. Then you will be assured of some beauty all year, and even more so when the flowers do finally pop up. Also, plant an evergreen shrub and maybe some ornamental grass (or Christmas ferns) in the center of a garden bed; colorful annuals and perennials can surround this when weather permits.

The Winter Garden - Create a Garden that Shines Through the Forgotten Season - For many gardeners, winter is simply a season to endure while planning for the coming spring. The rich floral splendor they’ve enjoyed has given way to dull browns and grays tipped by lonely snow-capped branches. But that doesn’t have to be: there are so many easy and inexpensive ways to add real winter interest to any garden. Two hundred color photographs show the diverse possibilities, along with site-specific design plans. There are suggestions for selecting and caring for a broad assortment of flowers, grasses, shrubs, and trees that boast dramatic winter flair, plus professional choices for cold-hardy container plants. Smart tips include using colored stones, adding bronze and wood accents, and maximizing the effect of winter light on plants.