notes and musings from a perennial gardener
Great gardens don’t invent themselves. In fact they can be a lot of work to create. Here are my suggestions for making the task of creating (or revitalizing) a perennial garden from scratch easier and more satisfying.
To begin, dedicate a small notebook to your gardening projects or use an app like Google Keep. Don’t rush the planning stage. Jot down the answers to these questions, and track your progress.
Who doesn’t love a green and white garden? Done well, it’s hard to beat this simple yet elegant look. Normally we associate green and white with either very traditional or formal gardens. Indeed, clipped hedges enclosing white roses and foxgloves is a classic, and very English, combination.
While the British may be the best known exhibitors of this style, there are lots of ways to combine green and white. Narrowing down your plant choices is a good way to make the planning more manageable.
Yellow is nearly indispensible in a garden. It’s light, it’s bright, it adds contrast and draws the eye. Except in special situations like moon gardens and other limited color schemes, yellow is welcome because it has the ability to energize a view and alleviate perceived heaviness. Indeed, this ability is one of yellow’s best assets. Yet its very abundance means we often overlook ways to better utilize its sunny disposition.
Not everyone is a fan, of course. Yellow may not complement one’s house color or go with other important elements in the landscape. Some yellows dominate or clash. While the paler hues are easiest to work with, strong shades can be trickier when a harmonious result is desired. This causes some people to avoid yellow all together, which is a shame.
Fortunately, variations like yellow-green, yellow-apricot, yellow-beige, and exciting bicolors allow for endless possibility.