Landscape Garden Color

Posted by Georgene A. Bramlage Sep 25, 2007

I love color! Color in my clothing, and around me in my home and garden! Long ago, I fretted about how to redecorate my living room. In extreme annoyance and exasperation, my close friend, an interior decorator, reminded me that all I had to do was "think of the living room the same way you think of your yard and gardens." The living room project turned out well enough for the upholsterer to remark "It looks as if a real professional did it!"

Consequently, in this week's article Landscape Garden Color: Planned Design Generates Unified Appearance , I begin to share my ideas and suggestions about landscape garden color. This article discusses how landscape gardens with coordinated color present unified appearances and pleasing public images. American and International gardens that use color in new or impressive, large-scale displays are mentioned.

This article also reminds gardeners that using color in the garden landscape calls for knowing basic guiding principles that include working with the primary colors (red, blue, and yellow), knowing what they mean in terms of American culture, and when to use or not use them.

Future articles will discuss tints and tones, hues and shades, and specific plants and groups of plants that work well together.