Winter berries in the garden provide colourful entertainment? Just ask David Domoney

8 November 2022

 

As the sunsets from autumn into winter, our hedgerows and gardens become alive with the rich colours of winter berries. Whether you’re growing berries to make jams, jellies, and delicious desserts, or you’re doing your bit to encourage birds into your garden, there are plenty of plants that have a lot to offer at this time of year.

 

 

Warmed up

In order to keep your garden feeling warm during these colder winter months, you want to have in place patio and paving that enables you to enjoy the garden year-round. Pavestone’s range of porcelain products enable you to do this. Dolomite Sunset porcelain paving are large effect pavers that are well suited to large spaces or can be conveniently cut to suit smaller patios too.

 

 

The Sunset shade will deliver that sun-baked Mediterranean aesthetic, with warm tones throughout. Crafted from ceramic porcelain, these pavers have the lovely appearance of natural stone. Meanwhile they offer all the benefits of porcelain. The moss and algae resistance, alongside anti-slip qualities, mean that the garden is a place of paradise through winter as well as summer.

 

Berries for birds

Now your patio is inviting all year round, inviting wildlife into your space is another way of making your garden well-used and appreciated whatever the season. Sorbus aucuparia (rowan) is a berry-bearing plant that birds love. The small orange-red berries from August to January prove very popular with redwings, song thrush, blackcaps, and waxwings. Not only can birds enjoy them, but they’re edible to humans too. They are high in vitamin C, but you may prefer to leave them for our flying friends as they do have a sour taste. As well as the berries, the foliage puts on a show, turning from green to yellow in autumn with flat clusters of white flowers in spring

 

Similarly, Pyracantha (firethorn) has orange berries for that fiery colouring. It can be grown as a shrub, or even trained as a climber. The tasty berries will be eaten by birds, and they’ll also find shelter in the dense cover of the thorny structure. The thorny growth makes this plant great for below windows or used as perimeter hedging to deter unwanted guests into the garden. With full sun or partial shade, this plant can grow up to 4m tall.

 

 

 

Benefit the birds

As well as food, having a water source for birds in your garden is a fantastic way of encouraging wildlife in. Keep a supply of fresh water to drink and bathe in. During the winter months, break the surface of bird baths if it freezes over. Place the bird bath near a tree or shrub so the visiting birds aren’t too exposed. This way they can also easily hop between bath and branches.

 

 

A watering hole for birds

During the winter months, break the surface of bird baths if it freezes over. Place the bird bath near a tree or shrub so the visiting birds aren’t too exposed. This way they can also easily hop between bath and branches.

 

 

Perfect for bird baths & fountains

Sometimes, a pond, fountain or other water feature is best, as birds seem to be attracted to the moving water. Choose one of the Sandstone Circles to create a focal point to situate the bird bath or small fountain in the centre of. This will enhance the shapes in the garden, adding form and structure to the space.
As well as berries to eat, there are many shrubs perfect for shelter and nesting for visiting birds and wildlife that can be planted in raised beds or on slopes. This makes them the perfect accompaniment to winding steps up from one area of the patio to another, utilising the same Dolomite Sunset porcelain paving as the main section of the patio.

 

Evergreen choices like Elaeagnus x ebbingei (Ebbinge’s silverberry) has large, dense growth with leathery silver-green leaves. As well as foliage all year round, there are berries in winter and fragrant white flowers in autumn to enjoy as you pass them by on your garden journey. In a sunny or partially shaded location with moist but well-drained soil, this hardy shrub will grow happily.

 

 

A place to sit & watch the wildlife

Then, all that’s left for you to do is pick an outdoor seating area made from rattan, aluminium, or wood to sit under a pergola or parasol for shelter. This will become the perfect place to sit and enjoy the sights and sounds of your garden and watch our flying friends pay you a visit.

 

 

Bountiful berries

Of course, growing berries in the garden is good for birds, but it’s nice to have a harvest at your fingertips for you to use in the kitchen too.

 

 

The haws of Crataegus monogyna (hawthorn) can be used for jellies and wines, that’s if you get to them before the redwings, fieldfares, and blackbirds. The fruits are deep red in colour and are high in antioxidants. As well as providing berries for us and birds, the cream flowers that bloom in spring are popular with pollinators. Ensure the hawthorn is planted in moist but well-drained soil in a spot with plenty of sun or partial shade.

 

 

Don’t be sloe! Beat quick to beat the birds

Or make your own gin using the blue-black fruits of Prunus spinosa (blackthorn or sloe). Although small birds like Blue Tits like these, they can also be used to make wines and preserves too. Blackthorn can grow up to 4m tall when planted in a moist but well-drained and sunny location. When planting with the purpose of harvesting berries, I’d recommend planting a variety of berry-producing plants to keep birds happy too.

 

 

Having an assortment of berries growing in your garden will benefit birds, as well as being used in our own kitchens. Over winter, make your garden an inviting place to relax and watch wildlife.

 

 

 

This month I have selected a video of a garden featured in the blog. It showcases Dekwood porcelain paving, replicating wooden planks laid as a decking. Of course being porcelain it requires much less maintenance than decking does to keep it looking good. 

 

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