Color Harmony

I

Glen Goldberg
Special to the Jewish News

C

olor. It can stimulate, soothe and
manipulate the senses. When it
comes to color harmony in garden
and landscape design, the palette is yours.
Color choices are infinite and may seem
intimidating at the same time. No worries!
You'll be surprised at how much fun you can
have making choices.
Start with the basics and look to Mother
Nature. She's done a great job at making her
creations evoke a variety of emotions.
Be confident in your own artistic abilities.
Sometimes gardening is a matter of trial and
error, and errors are easily corrected.
However, you'll dramatically increase
your odds of success by talking to the
experts at your local garden center. A profes-
sional will be able to show you which plants
and shrubs will thrive in your particular
region and which disease and insect chal-
lenges you might encounter.
What is your design goal? Do you want
to look at your garden and feel stress melt
away? Do you prefer to be stimulated by

splashes of brilliance? Are you trying to
mask a "problem area?" Do you need colors
to attract butterflies and hummingbirds?
A great place to start your planning is the
color wheel, which you may remember as
far back as elementary art class. You can get
a great appreciation of color combos and
what is just right for you.
How about complementary colors?
They're the opposites on the wheel. Think
red and green, yellow and violet, blue and
orange.
A polychromatic design uses a wide range
of colors from around the wheel. But this
approach can be tricky. Too much color will
confuse the eye and the results may appear
to be disorganized or too busy.
If you're a novice, keeping it simple may
be the best way to go.
For a stunning display, you might consid-
er a single color or monochromatic design
for your garden. By using the range of hues
from a single spoke of color on the wheel,
you can have an intensely different effect,
depending on which color you choose.
Monochromatic gardens can make a
small area of your garden appear larger.

Annuals can
do the job here.
You'll accomplish
a soothing feel-
ing when you
With a little planning, your garden will express what it just right
combine white
for you.
geraniums, ver-
bena, begonia and
bacopa.
its peak color? Which plants thrive in sun or
Consider a plant or flower's varying
shade? What foliage provides interest even
degrees of intensity for visual impact. The
when flowers are not in bloom?
use of cool colors like blues, greens and
As always, avoid planting during periods
purples will provide a calm and peaceful
of drought and heat. While annuals are
spot in your garden.
traditionally planted in the spring, many
If blue is your preference, gorgeous peren- are still available for sale. Better yet, con-
nials are available, including hydrangea,
sider putting in perennials in late summer
delphinium, lavender and some varieties of
and early fall. They will thrive when rain
hosta.
increases and the temperature moderates.
To create more excitement, reds, oranges
Plus, they'll have plenty of time to establish
and yellows are brilliant accents bringing a
healthy roots to get them through winter.
"wow" factor to your garden. Roses, dahlias,
With a modest amount of planning and
zinnias and tuberous begonias are just a few purchasing, you can coax your garden into a
examples of some warm and brilliant garden showcase worthy of bragging rights.
additions.
The gardening pro can help you with
Glen Goldberg is the founder and owner of Four
much more than color choice. When during
Seasons Garden Center & Custom Landscape
the growing season will a perennial provide
Services.

❑

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