Colourful perennial plants in mixed flower border

Paint with flowers

Gardeners can use a pallete of plants to create a living canvas that embraces light, colour and texture, says Debi Holland.

Gardeners can use a pallete of plants to create a living canvas that embraces light, colour and texture, says Debi Holland

Throughout history artists have sought to interpret real life via art and in turn gardeners have sought to create art from real life.

Impressionist painters Claude Monet, Edgar Degas and Pierre-August Renoir all had a tremendous influence on the world around them; these trailblazers used bold, controversial, ‘painterly’ brushstrokes to depict garden life, plants and flowers, the most famous being Monet’s waterlily ponds at his home in Giverny, France.

These artists were committing to canvas a time capsule of horticultural practices locked in oils forever which we still draw inspiration from today. These techniques have withstood the tests of time and are adopted in many garden designs. 

Blue hues of salvia
The blue hues of salvia. Image: Debi Holland

Colour

One of the fundamental principles of garden design is colour. It can sway mood, create atmosphere, evoke feeling and even alter the viewer’s perception of distance. 

Our eyes are most sensitive to the colour green; it is the easiest colour for our brains to process so it is no surprise we feel relaxed when spending time in nature. Scientific research has shown green colours enhance concentration, focus and creativity, improve mood and reduce stress. No wonder gardens can feel like a calm sanctuary, soothing and restoring balance away from day-to-day anxieties; all the more reason to ensure green features heavily in any garden plan.

Pops of colour are also essential for an engaging design. Think about which plants contrast and complement each other, for example agapanthus will look even more impressive when planted next to the creamy flowers and stems of the ice plant. Weave primary yellow, burnt orange and crimson through dreamy wafts of sepia and green to create ethereal drama and interest, drawing the eye to those highlighted areas so you are taken on a visual journey through the border without even taking a step.

Agapanthus and ice plant
Agapanthus planted next to an ice plant with the fiery colours of crocosmia in the background. Image: Debi Holland

Drift planting

Planting plants in close proximity to each other means there is minimal space for weeds to grow, this cuts down on relentless garden tasks like weeding. This low maintenance planting style ties the border together in an organic way; nature never naturally grows in straight lines. This style has been perfected by the inspirational Dutch designer Piet Oudolf.

For greatest impact, group plants of the same variety together in blocks of three, five or seven depending on the size of your patch and then repeat this a few times at random intervals in different places along the border. Your eye will be drawn to each group like clusters of colour on an impressionist’s painting. 

Planting groups of perennials and grasses in odd numbers will help stop the planting appear too uniform; it is far too easy to simply plonk four plants down in a neat square but this can make the design look forced. The irregularity of plant placings will create a more natural flow through the design.

red poppies and ox-eye daisies
Ox-eye daisies and poppies. Image: Debi Holland

What to plant

Bulbs

Planting bulbs is a great way to inject drifts of colour through borders and ensure you have a succession of interest from month-to-month. Start with the spring classics daffodils and tulips. 

Interplant with allium which will fill gaps from May to June, from giant show-stoppers like ‘Globemaster’ and ‘Gladiator,’ mid-sized ‘Violet Beauty’ and ‘Purple Sensation’ to the tall late bloomers of A. sphaerocephalon and petite stems of ‘Rosy Dream’ and ‘Graceful Beauty’; all are a hit with pollinators.

Giant alliums
Show-stopping alliums. Image: Adobe Stock

Annuals

Although completing their life cycle in one season from seed, to bloom and back to seed, annuals are a great way to inject vivid colour into border gaps. Sun-loving cosmos is the ultimate filler; larger than life it erupts from borders with a mass of flowers for weeks. Try ‘Purity’ or ‘Cupcakes White’ for a sea of white, ‘Apollo Pink’ or rich crimson ‘Rubenza’ for solid blocks of coloured petals. Multi-coloured ‘Candy Stripe’ and ‘Capriola’ have exquisite edged petals that will have gardeners swooning.

And make room for zinnia; this certainly is one of nature’s wow plants. Native to Mexico zinnia radiate out of borders with bright bold colours ranging from red and orange to pink and lime green; zinnia cannot be ignored. Try ‘Orange King’, ‘Purple Prince’ and ‘Queen Lime’.

Colourful zinnias in border
Bright and beautiful zinnias pop out of the border. Image: Debi Holland

Ideal for drift planting schemes; both zinnia and cosmos can be easily raised from seed producing multiple plants at minimal cost.

Perennials

Perennials are the ‘jazz hands’ of a mixed border; the show-off plants. 

Big, bold, blousy rudbeckia, echinacea and helenium, multi-headed aster, salvia, ox-eye daisy and phlox all shine brightly for weeks and if deadheaded dahlia will bloom for months right up to the first frost. 

Bright yellow rudbeckia
The bright and bold flowers of rudbeckia will light up the border for weeks. Image: Debi Holland

The ice plant, Hylotelephium spectabile, formerly Sedum spectabile, changes hue as the year progresses. It is the ultimate drought-tolerant, independent perennial.

Coreopsis are golden daisy-like flowers which beam from borders all summer long and for a low-growing hard-working plant which needs virtually no intervention, then hardy geranium ‘Rozanne’ is a winner or pepper-planting plants with the quintessential English garden classic lavender.

Choose a colour scheme then drift plant groups of these perennials at intervals throughout a border; sit back and enjoy the show!

Grasses

Ornamental grasses are a great asset to planting plans providing contrast to static perennials and bulbs and a variation of height. Clumps of grasses can create a romantic backdrop to other plants and add movement, undulating in the breeze, lending themselves to a more naturalist look.

Grasses against wooden arbor
Ornamental grass planted against a wooden arbor. Image: Debi Holland

Mexican feather grass, Stipa tenuissima ‘Pony Tails’ is a pale deciduous grass around 60cm tall which works incredibly well in drift planting; as the name suggests it grows in compact green tufts and fans out like a pony tail into a spray of straw-coloured foliage. These grasses can easily be grouped around perennials.

Or Chinese silver grass, Miscanthus sinensis ‘Morning Light’, ‘Flamingo’ for a pink vibe of arching foliage or ‘Zebrinus’ whose 1.25m tall leaves are decorated with striking, stripy cream bands.

For larger areas try sun-loving evergreen perennial golden oats, Stipa giganteastanding tall at 2m this grass is a real statement rising above the mid-level planting.

Stipa gigantea grass
The golden tones of Stipa gigantea adds wonderful texture, height and movement to the border. Image: Debi Holland

Shrubs

Through all the fun and froth of annuals and perennials, anchor your borders with some evergreen structure, this will hold the planting scheme together throughout the seasons from spring to winter, so, even when some seasonal flowers have faded there will always be the solid foundations of some reliable shrubs.

Hebe are versatile compact shrubs. ’Heartbreaker’ is a vibrant variegated variety with green cream-edged leaves and attractive pink tips which change colour throughout the season or try hebe ‘Sapphire’ with luscious green foliage and purple-blue, spiked flower clusters in spring and summer.

Euonymus fortunei ‘Blonde Beauty’ is a bright, compact, low-maintenance shrub which will dazzle with variegated foliage all year round as will berberis. Try Berberis thunbergii ‘Orange Rocket’, crimson ‘Bannow Bay’, the petite 50cm ‘Tiny Gold’ and variegated ‘Starburst’ or ‘Harlequin’.

Merit can also be found in deciduous shrubs; hardy hibiscus and hydrangea are well worth introducing to borders.

Hibiscus flowering
Deciduous shrubs like hibiscus are also worth including for their bold, colourful flowers. Image: Debi Holland
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