January Flowers

January can sometimes feel grey and gloomy, but the first signs of spring life are already emerging, with snowdrops and crocuses pushing up through the soil. Winter-flowering shrubs such as viburnum, witch hazel and sarcococca add bright colour to banish the dull days.

January often feel like a month of rest and respite after the frantic energy of the Christmas period. But it can also be a struggle, with the grey, often rainy, days not yet being long enough to give us that sense of optimism about spring. Once you've taken down the festive lights, look to nature to provide you with the bright sparks of colour you need to make you smile.

If you've planned your garden carefully, you'll have incorporated various winter-flowering perennials and shrubs. During the summer and autumn months, these plants tend to be unobtrusive – a backdrop for seasonal flowers – but now it's their chance to shine. The good news is that you can plant many of these winter stars now, so if you feel your garden is lacking in colour and life, all is not lost.

Find out what other jobs you can do in the garden this month in our guide to January gardening jobs.

Viburnum 'Dawn'

When the days seem dark and grey, Viburnum × bodnantense 'Dawn' brings the promise of spring to your garden. Beautiful pale pink flowers blossom on the bare stems of this deciduous shrub from November all the way through to March. If the flowers themselves don’t stop you in your tracks, their sweet fragrance will. Cut a couple of stems and place them in a vase to fill your home with the sweet scent of summer – in the middle of January.

Viburnum 'Dawn' provides a lush green backdrop for colourful perennials in summer, then shines again in autumn, when its deep green leaves turn a rich burgundy-red. Plant Viburnum 'Dawn' next to a path or entrance to your home to best appreciate its scented flowers. It prefers sun, but will also grow well in partial shade. Find out more about growing and caring for Viburnum × bodnantense 'Dawn' in our plant care guide.

Plant it with…

Daphne 'Eternal Fragrance' or Daphne 'Perfume Princess': These small, semi-evergreen shrubs produce fragrant pink flowers early in spring, with some varieties flowering through to the end of summer.

Camellia 'Onetia Holland': This camellia's showy white flowers bloom from March through to May, just as the blossoms on Viburnum 'Dawn' are fading. During the winter months, its evergreen foliage provides a nice backdrop for the viburnum's pink flowers.

Helleborus 'Pirouette': Viburnum 'Dawn' can look lonely, flowering on its own, but adding hellebores underneath creates a colourful oasis in your January garden. 'Pirouette' has beautiful white and pink flowers that darken as they age, perfectly complementing the viburnum's delicate blooms.

Erica 'Winter Ladies Red' Heather 

Erica heathers are perfect for adding vibrant colour to your garden. Erica 'Winter Ladies Red' produces masses of tiny bell-shaped red flowers throughout the winter months and into spring. Plant it in groups or with other winter heathers to create a blanket of colour.

Ericas prefer acidic soil, but they tolerate neutral and alkaline soils much better than other heathers, making them suitable for a wider range of gardens and plant pairings. They look particularly good in rock gardens or at the front of borders and add texture and colour to a winter container.

Plant it with…

Pieris 'Katsura': Plant this evergreen, acid-loving shrub behind Erica 'Winter Ladies Red' in a pot or mixed border. It creates a dazzling display in spring when new, deep red leaves emerge, along with pink buds that open into pale pink flowers.

Cornus 'Kesselringii': The colourful stems of dogwoods add dramatic height behind low-growing winter heathers. 'Kesselringii' shines in every season, with creamy white flowers in spring, berries in summer and dramatic reddish-purple foliage in autumn, which is shed to reveal deep purple stems during the winter months.

Crocus tommasinianus 'Whitewell Purple': Early-flowering bulbs are the perfect companion to ericas in rockeries and pots. This pretty, petite crocus is one of the earliest spring bulbs to bloom, flowering in February and March.

Sarcococca 'Dragon Gate'

Sarcococca (sweet box) is a must-have shrub for shaded patios and gardens. Sarcococca 'Dragon Gate' has delicate white flowers that bloom profusely during the winter months, brightening up the darkest corner of your garden and offering a warm fragrance that will tempt you to sit outside on even the coldest days. The flowers are followed by bright red berries in spring, and the evergreen foliage gives year-round structure and colour.

Sarcococca 'Dragon Gate' is a compact, slow-growing shrub that works particularly well in small garden borders and pots. Plant it next to an entrance, walkway or seating area to make the most of its scented flowers.

Plant it with…

Hosta 'Fire and Ice': Hostas make great companions to sarcococca as they shine during the summer months. This variety has cream leaves that turn green at the margin, which are a welcome contrast to the evergreen shrubs that thrive in shade. Lavender coloured flowers bloom in summer.

Azalea 'White': As Sarcococca 'Dragon Gate' finishes flowering, this pretty azalea starts. Plant the two together to create a long-lasting display of white flowers from January through to May. Both plants grow well in partial shade and sarcococcas can tolerate the acid soils that azaleas need to thrive.

Trachelospermum jasminoides (star jasmine): This evergreen climber provides a wonderful backdrop to Sarcocca 'Dragon Gate'. Train it up a sheltered, partially shaded wall or trellis and enjoy heavily scented white flowers in mid-late summer.

Hamamelis 'Diane' (Witch hazel)

Witch hazels bloom on bare stems in shades of yellow, orange and red. Hamamelis 'Diane' is perhaps the best of the reds, with spidery copper-red flowers that bloom from January through to March. While not as heavily scented as Viburnum 'Dawn', the flowers have a delicate fragrance that's particularly noticeable when it rains – and let's face it, we get plenty of that in January in the UK!  

Witch hazel blends into the background during summer, but as the days shorten, the green leaves turn shades of red and yellow, giving a dramatic display of autumnal colour. Hamamelis 'Diane' is a large shrub, growing up to four metres, that works well in large borders or as a specimen plant in front gardens.

Plant it with…

Early-flowering bulbs like Galanthus woronowii and Crocus 'Romance': Snowdrops and early-flowering crocuses light up the ground around Hamamelis 'Diane'. Crocus 'Romance' has lemon yellow flowers to complement the witch hazel's red petals.

Rhododendron 'Scarlet Wonder': Evergreen shrubs like rhododendrons provide a good backdrop for witch hazel, particularly in woodland gardens. 'Scarlet Wonder' adds colour to your garden in April and May, allowing Hamamelis 'Diane' to shine at other times of the year.

Mahonia 'Soft Caress': This evergreen shrub is one of the best flowering plants for January, with spines of yellow flowers. 'Soft Caress' blooms earlier than witch hazel, offering some early winter colour, but the flowering periods overlap, giving a border that bursts with colour just when you need it most.

FAQ

What flowers are in season in January in the UK?

Hellebores, snowdrops, winter pansies, erica heathers and early crocuses are all in season in January. Many flowering shrubs bloom at this time of year, including viburnum, witch hazel, sarcococca, and mahonia. Clematis 'Freckles' is a beautiful climber that produces striking flowers throughout the winter months. 

What flower seeds can I sow in January in the UK? 

January is a little early to begin sowing, but if you have a heated propagator (and ideally a grow light), you can get a head start. An unheated greenhouse will be too cold for germination, but a sunny windowsill indoors could also work. You can sow hardy annuals such as sweet peas, calendula and nigella. Chilli plants are slow growing, so if you have the right conditions to start them off now (they need heat and light), you'll get fruit earlier.

What flowers can I plant in January in the UK?

Hellebores are a great flower to plant in your garden in January. Buying them at this time of year means you can see them in bloom immediately. Other flowers you can plant now include winter pansies, erica heathers and cyclamen.

What is the January birth flower?

Carnations and snowdrops are the birth flowers for January. While carnations don't naturally bloom at this time of year in the UK, snowdrops are a very welcome sight, poking their heads up out of the ground during the gloomiest days of winter.