“We get about 8 months of fall and winter interest.”

That’s a lot of interest!

A couple for your consideration would be Carpinus caroliniana...

...and Acer mandschuricum

Neither is especially demanding and both should be hardy for you.

maackia, yes, and I am only exaggerating by a little bit. We have these two short unpleasant seasons: for about 3 weeks in the spring and maybe six weeks in the fall there are mud season and twig season, respectively. Mud season is really just twig season with a lot of water. Neither is particularly pretty.

Carpinus caroliniana is on my list, though not yet in my possession. The maple is beautiful and was not on my radar!

If Spirea 'Ogon' is hardy for you, it has great soft orange fall color.

I have oakleaf hydrangeas and their falls colors are so lovely and their browned flower clusters persist through winter. The clusters actually take on a grayed-brown color, reminiscent of sepia tones, I love them. One of the clusters remained intact through the summer until some crazy windstorms finally took it off! Blueberries have lovely fall foliage.

I have a dogwood that has a very "bonsai-ish" form and it's wonderful to observe with snow on its branches.

Witch hazel blooms in the winter and is scented, so that's always a treat.

Here is my own list, for the sake of contributing--didn't really mean this to be all about my yard :)

Acer palmatum amoenum 'Tsukushi gata'

Acer palmatum matsumurae 'Chitose-yama'

Amelanchier canadensis

Amelanchier laevis

Aronia melanocarpa

Cercidiphyllum japonicum

Chamaecyparis lawsoniana

Cupressus nootkatensis

Corylus avellana (hope to get a curly
variant if I grow enough seeds)

Crataegus crus-galli

Gleditsia triacanthos

Hamamelis vernalis

Platanus occidentalis

Prunus avium

Prunus serotina

Prunus triloba

Pyracantha coccinea (which F.W.
Schumacher indicates should grow even here!)

Thuja occidentalis

Ulmus americana

Edit: There are some others, too, like apples that I'm not really thinking about because I have already started growing them by the dozen. Also, I didn't mean to suggest that I don't love all the suggestions! Thanks!

Acer triflorum and Hybrid Paperbark maple are two options to add as well

Autumn brilliance serviceberry and regent serviceberry are two of my fall favorites. Here are other ideas.

Euonymus alatus (cited in the article) is my favorite!!! Sadly, it is illegal to plant it in VT.

I live in Addison County (East Middlebury, VT), and last winter I stumbled on the idea of permaculture and planting "food forests." I had then planned all winter by doing A LOT of research on various plants, looking at hardiness, lack of suckering and thorns, size, years till fruiting, etc. In the spring, I rented a sod cutter, and cut 120'x 10' or so sized bed from the sidewalk back toward the house. I already had some trees planted out front, including an Autumn Brilliance serviceberry, a Stewartia, paw paws and a magnolia. I decided to plant a hedge the length of the property...mainly as a leaf block and to add a bit of privacy and dampen some of the traffic noise and dirt. I went with Regent serviceberries, which are supposed to be beautiful in all seasons and produce delicious fruit. I added numerous berry bushes, but the trees that I am most excited about are the four American Persimmons: Yates, Prok, 100-46, and Valeen's Beauty. (Ordered from Cricket Hill Nursery.) They have beautiful fall color, and the fruit can hang on until winter and will be a beautiful orange color.

I drove up to UVM because I found out that they had a persimmon tree, and I wanted to be sure that I liked the fruit which is harvestable in late October-November. I really did like it, and love the idea that I will have continuous fresh fruit from late April?-December. I also planted a medlar and quince tree which will remain under 15' tall and which should have some lovely fall color, including the fruit, which has a lovely citrusy smell for the quince fruit and flowers, so I planted it near the front porch. Out back, I planted some hazelnuts, which have all-season interest and produce nuts! They, too, will stay under 20' I planted 50 asparagus behind the Regent serviceberries; the fronds will turn golden later in the fall, but which offer such an ethereal, delicate appearance and lots of food come spring!

Elsewhere on the property, I planted winterberries. They are loaded, and throughout the winter, especially with snow, they give me such pleasure. They don't get too big and their structure is quite fine. The red berries are a brilliant break from the monochromatic look of winter. Another plant that I love is red twig dogwood. The red twigs truly are beautiful. I also have a Kousa dogwood which I adore. The bracts in summer are beautiful, and I just read that the pinkish-red drupes are edible. When I was out in the food forest, I got the courage to taste one. Oh my; I love them! I wish I'd tasted them sooner! Another plant that I have out front is a double file viburnum. Its branches are mostly horizontal, and add a lot to the structural bones of the garden.

I do have a number of evergreens whose true value is appreciated in the winter for there color and something other than bare branches! Interspersed throughout the property, they offer so much and ask for so little in return. I saw that you had cedars on your list; they are beautiful, but can cause rust on many plants. Just a thought. All of this is probably too late; you've probably planted out everything by now, but I got so excited when I saw Addison, VT!

You probably have them planted up there like weeds , but I have always liked the look of white birch, especially the weeping varieties and they great out of foliage too (especially when lit up at night). Anyway, I don't see them around me and I think they look exotic. Not sure if they are hardy for but weeping willow and Metasequoia (Dawn Redwood) has Winter appeal. Weeping Willow and DR are supposedly hardy to Zone 4a.

betula pendula. The white flaky bark is stunning.

Margaritaville (Zone 7b/NJ) They were rare where I lived in NJ, too. Now I have one on my front lawn (was here when I moved in)... When it has completely shed in winter, it will radiate in sunlight like the spring!