Looking for plants that thrive during North Texas winters? Consider these shining stars.

I’m a big fan of people who contribute quietly — sitting in meetings, finally coming up with comments that bring clarity to chaos. Then they smile and go back to their corners, listening and processing, waiting for the next time that their brilliance will be needed.

I’ve served on committees with people like that and I admire them to the end of the earth, because without them, that end of the earth might have come before the ends of those meetings.

There are plants like that we can choose for our landscapes. They work their ways through spring, summer and fall, only to become more glorious contributors in the middle of winter. They shout out when we need them the most, so let’s recognize them now with a little bit of press time. These are some of our shining stars of the winter.

▪ Leopard plant. Old-timers knew it as Ligularia, but it’s been reclassified into genus Farfugium. It’s a giant-leafed perennial that combines well in shade with hostas, ferns and other plants that prefer highly organic, consistently moist conditions. It produces strong spikes of bright yellow blooms during the winter each year. Bees and butterflies love the blooms if conditions are warm enough to encourage their activity. Striking variegated selections are also sold. This is a showy perennial that sadly isn’t used often enough in any of its forms.

▪ Sasanqua camellias. We’re not exactly in camellia country here in Tarrant County and its environs. Our soils and irrigation water are highly alkaline, and that makes them pout, plus our winters are cold. But that’s why we plant selections of Camellia sasanqua. They’re more winter-hardy than varieties of C. japonica. Sansanquas also bloom earlier in the winter, so there’s less chance of water getting caught between their petals, then subsequently freezing and rupturing the petals. They get their blooming done before the bulk of the really cold weather. Plant them in large beds filled with mixes of sphagnum peat moss and finely ground pine bark mulch 18 inches deep.

▪ Leatherleaf mahonia. Its foliage is a lovely blue-green 12 months a year, but in the winter the plants are topped by rich yellow flower clusters that give way to grape-like hands of pea-sized, steel-blue berries. Birds love the berries as they ripen in spring. This plant grows to 3 to 4 feet tall and 3 feet wide, and it makes a dramatic statement in shade or morning sun. If it begins to get leggy, cut the tallest canes back dramatically and let them regrow from their bases.

▪ Christmas rose, Lenten rose. These are Hellebores, and they’re the hot commodities right now. They’re perennials with attractive foliage and showy flowers that often appear soon after Christmas and definitely by Lent, hence the names. The flowers have typically hung downward, but breeders have been busy producing blooms with brighter colors and upright-facing habits. Grow Hellebores in highly organic soil, notably right alongside hostas, ferns, violets, oxalis and other shade-loving plants.

▪ Nandinas. We switch to plants we grow for showy mid-winter foliage. Nandinas are graceful low shrubs. Depending on the variety they may grow to be 18 to 48 inches tall, making them suitable as a tall groundcover or a low or mid-sized landscaping shrub. They’re green all summer, shifting to deep purple, reds, oranges, even yellows in winter. Some types even top themselves with clusters of showy berries. What’s not to love!

▪ Purple wintercreeper euonymous. As Asian jasmine has faced repeated diebacks to hard freezes across much of North Texas, purple wintercreeper has taken over the position of prominence in groundcovers. It’s great in full or part sun, with deep green foliage all summer that shades to purple-maroon for the winter. It makes for an interesting and handsome transition.

▪ Hollies for berries. I try to steer people who want flowering shrubs in shady back yards toward hollies instead. Rather than struggling to produce a few meager blooms like most shrubs do in the shade, hollies will load up with berries. And, instead of holding them for a couple of weeks like the blooming shrubs hold their flowers, hollies hang onto their berries all winter. Best types include dwarf Burford, Needlepoint (Willowleaf), Nellie R. Stevens, yaupon and Warren’s Red possumhaw hollies, but there are others.

▪ Coral bark maple. This falls into the loose grouping of Japanese maples, except this one has coral-red (pinkish-red) bark all winter. With the proper backdrop that color can be stunning. It grows to 15 to 18 feet tall and wide and can be a real showstopper if used appropriately. I use it only in shade — no direct sun after 9:30 or 10 in the morning.

▪ Crape myrtles for bark. These plants have always been known for showy bark, but thanks to the breeding work of Dr. Don Egolf of the United States National Arboretum in Washington D.C., we have even more stunning types now. He hybridized the older species Lagerstroemia indica with L. fauriei from Japan. His prime goals were to get the resistance to powdery mildew that L. fauriei exhibits and the cinnamon-colored trunks it brings with it as well. You’ll see the results of his great work in varieties carrying the Indian tribal names.

You can hear Neil Sperry on KLIF 570 AM on Saturday afternoons 1-3 p.m. and on WBAP 820 AM Sunday mornings 8-10 a.m. Join him at www.neilsperry.com and follow him on Facebook.

This story was originally published November 25, 2022 at 5:30 AM.