The Best Low-Temperature Exterior Plants

Annuals

• When summer annuals have faded, there are a few hardy bloomers that can brighten gray skies and withstand a freeze. Pansies are prolific bloomers and come in a variety of colors. Petunias, particularly the varieties, "Pretty Much Picasso," "Phantom" and "Supertunia" perform well in cold weather. Nemesia can survive a freeze but doesn't do well in frost. Keep it moist and cool. Violets, snapdragons and Diascia are also good cold weather flowers. Watch the sun for a few days before planting. The fall sun will be lower in the sky, so you might have to plant in different areas.

Perennials

• Horticulturists at Oregon State University suggest planting winter blooming perennials and evergreen shrubs to help cure winter blues. Shrubs like witch hazel, wintersweet and winter flowering honeysuckle are all sweet scented winter blooming shrubs. Perennial flowers like hellebore, Kaffir lily and autumn joy bloom during the winter and provide visual interest year-round. Wild geranium is a perennial native of Minnesota that also makes an attractive edition to a winter garden.

Blueberries

• Blueberries are becoming increasingly common in home gardens, and blueberries actually need cold weather to produce fruit. Horticulturists at Michigan State University are expert blueberry growers and say that blueberries need about a thousand hours of chilling every winter. Without the chilling period, which induces dormancy, the plants will not grow and produce fruit in the spring. In fact, some varieties thrive in winter temperatures as low as -10 degrees Fahrenheit. Varieties such as Highbush can be grown in warmer regions like Florida and California, so any gardener can enjoy these delicious berries.

Protection Against Frost

• No plant is invincible, and even cold hardy varieties need protection sometimes. Gardeners may not realize that their perennials still need water in the cold weather, but these plants are still losing water all winter and need regular watering. Providing extra water prior to a hard freeze can help protect plants from dry, extreme cold. Adding an additional layer of mulch in the winter can help insulate plants. A plastic covering can help protect plants from widely varying night and daytime temperatures.