A jewel-coloured garden for 2022?
Not surprisingly, one of the leading garden trends for 2022 is a return to strong colours.
After two enduring years battling Covid, it seems that our confidence is back and with it, a taste for more daring plants that will energise and liven up our borders and enhance our mood – think reds, oranges, yellows and purples.
Putting together a colourful planting scheme is not as easy as it seems – of course it is a matter of personal taste and if you like a multicolour mix in your garden, there is nothing wrong with it.But a basic understanding of colour combinations and a few clever tricks can make all the difference between vibrant and riotous… Here are our top tips for success:
Some combinations just work and our favourites include:
– orange and blue with a hint of magenta pink
– dark pink and blue with a hint of lime green
– yellow and purple with shades of green
Choose a palette of 2 to 3 colours and then vary the shades and textures within each colour.
For example, if you use orange, try combining dark Crocosmia with lighter Helenium and terracotta coloured Achillea
Tone the scheme down with both structure and foliage – add a few bold shapes, like topiary shrubs, or textural plants, such as euphorbias, grasses and architectural umbellifers.
Greens will help keep the scheme cohesive.
Check flowering time carefully – you don’t want to have all your blues in the Spring and all your reds in the Autumn for example, plan for succession flowering.
Remember strong colours will mostly work in sunny borders only, so if your garden is shady, you may have to rethink the whole scheme. If in doubt, give us a ring!
Anne and Caroline, Planting Gems
07729 835988 / 07930 876348
