Garden ponds aren’t only for summer. With just a little planning, maintaining some interest and color in your garden pond through winter months is simple. Most pond plants die down as colder weather approaches, but that provides an chance for other people to flourish and for bold structural plants to really stick out.
Cape Pondweed
Cape pondweed (Aponogeton distachys) is a South African indigenous and its summit season is winter. In frost-free spaces it flowers year-round, filling the atmosphere with a delicate scent. Its blooms are white and its wide, semi-evergreen leaves are dark green. Hardy at U. S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 9a into 10b, it rises gradually to your maximum spread of 4 feet. Cape pondweed is good companion plant for water lilies.
Umbrella Plant
The umbrella plant (Cyperus involucratus) produces a strong architectural statement at the backyard pond with its striking umbrella-like arrangement of thin leaves at the tips of its stems. This plant is set back only by frost and will rise for several years. It is suitable for USDA plant hardiness zones 8 to 11 and usually grows between 3 and 4 feet high or up to 6 ft in shady conditions. This graceful plant tolerates water level varies nicely.
Zebra Rush
The zebra rush (Scirpus zebrinus) provides height and impact in the backyard pond. Its long stems, patterned in bands of green and cream, also provide cover for wildlife. It grows well in sun or part shade and grows in USDA plant hardiness zones 3 through 10. Spring is the ideal time to divide and replant clumps that have grown too large and also to cut back its older stems. The zebra rush can grow 6 feet tall.
Corkscrew Rush
Few plants have such fascinating foliage as the corkscrew rush (Juncus effusus “Curly Wurly”). Spirals of thin, green, glossy stems, 8 to 14 inches long, make this plant stick out in the winter pond. Suitable for USDA plant hardiness zones 4 to 9, the corkscrew rush prefers partial shade and grows quickly to your spread up to ten inches wide. After winter is finished, maintain a tidy appearance by cutting down the old leaf to generate room for new growth.