Your Garden’s November Checklist: Plants to make your garden pop
As the vibrant colours of autumn begin to fade and many plants retreat for the winter, your garden doesn’t have to follow suit. November marks a crucial time for planting, especially for shrubs, trees, and hedging, as the cool, damp soil gives new roots the perfect conditions to establish themselves while the plants are dormant.
A well-planned garden offers beauty in every season. The key to maintaining year-round visual appeal (and keeping your spirits up through the colder months) lies in selecting plants that offer structure, fragrance, evergreen foliage, or striking stem colour when everything else is bare.
We’ve curated a list of our favourites at The Big Plant Nursery that are ready to plant right now. Whether you’re looking for the vibrant winter scent of Sarcococca, the fiery red new growth of Photinia, a stately screening tree, or a low-maintenance, brightly coloured shrub, these top choices will ensure your garden remains a source of beauty and life straight through to spring.
At The Big Plant Nursery we have plants of all shapes and sizes, here are our top choices that will look great in your garden in November:
- Cornus (coloured stems) – Great for adding colour and interest without foliage.
- Daphne × transatlantica ‘Summer Ice’ – A compact, semi-evergreen shrub admired for its delightful fragrance and nearly continuous blooms. With glossy, dark green leaves edged in creamy white, provides year-round interest. Its star-shaped, pale pink to white flowers appear in abundance from spring through autumn, releasing a sweet, captivating scent that attracts pollinators. Low maintenance, it is an excellent choice for borders, or as a focal point in smaller gardens.
- Sarcococca confusa – An evergreen shrub prized for its glossy, dark green foliage and delightful winter fragrance. This low-maintenance plant produces small, creamy-white, highly scented flowers from late winter to early spring, attracting pollinators. The blooms are followed by shiny black berries, adding seasonal interest. An excellent choice for shady borders, woodland gardens, or containers. Its dense, bushy growth also makes it ideal for low hedging. Height and Spread 1.5m.
- Viburnum tinus ‘Eve Price’ – An evergreen shrub known for its year-round beauty and fragrant blooms.
- Pyracantha Saphyr Orange (‘Cadange’) – Bright orange berries follow, providing valuable food for the birds throughout autumn into early winter making it an ideal plant for wildlife gardens. Great for screening, its thorns act as a natural security barrier where defence is needed.
- Pyracantha ‘Golden Glow’ – Pyracantha ‘Golden Glow’ is an upright and spreading evergreen shrub with eliptical leaves and spiny stems. Small white flowers are produced in late spring and early summer followed by clusters of yellow berries which last throughout Autumn and into Winter, if the birds don’t get them first!
- Acer griseum – A small spreading deciduous tree with attractive peeling, paper like bark. Leaves turn a brilliant red and orange in autumn.
- Betula nigra (River Birch) – A bushy, deciduous tree known for its distinctive peeling bark and tolerance to wet soils. The variegated leaves are dark green edged with creamy white and when young they are tinted with pink, turning to yellow in the autumn. The bark starts off a pinkish orange later maturing to dark brown, providing a glorious contrast with the variegated leaves. Height 8-12m Spread 4-8m. Will grow in a wide range of situations including by the water or in a drier, well-drained position. Prefers acidic to neutral soils. Full sun or partial shade.
- Prunus serrula (Tibetan Cherry) – This captivating deciduous tree is celebrated for its distinctive and ornamental features. It boasts a polished, mahogany-coloured bark that exfoliates in thin, coppery strips, creating a unique and eye-catching visual texture. The leaves are dark green, turning yellow in the autumn. Clusters of small, white flowers bloom in spring, contributing to its seasonal charm. This is a sought-after choice for gardens, providing year-round interest and natural beauty. Height 4-8m. Grow in well drained or moist but well drained soil in full sun or partial shade.
Conifers
- Picea pungens ‘Edith’ (Colorado spruce) – Ideal for rock gardens, borders, or containers, it thrives in full sun to partial shade, tolerates most soil types (especially moist, well-drained acidic soil).
