Learn how to make “Pretty in Pink,” a spring flower arrangement excerpted from Karen Chapman and Christina Salwitz’s Gardening with Foliage First.
As pretty as a frothy pink party dress, this feminine combination will appeal to gardeners who want lots of flowers. The foliage of the two flowering plants contribute little to the design, so it was important to include the assortment of silver, cream, and purple leaves. The oversize silver lamb’s ears and a large succulent rosette also help balance the smaller-textured foliage and create a focal point.
Photo and design by Karen Chapman.
Site: Full sun, partial sun
Soil: Potting soil
Zone: 5-8
Season: Spring through Fall
How the Design Grows
Although the deutzia, lamb’s ears, and purple sedum look good from spring until fall, many of the other plants are treated as annuals, so this is primarily a summer display. Come fall, it is time to dismantle the container: transplant the perennials and deutzia into the garden and set the pot to one side for the winter.
Foliage Framework
Bella Grigio lamb’s ears (Stachys ‘Bella Grigio’)
This is the overachiever of lamb’s ears, offering foliage that is even softer, more silvery, and more vigorous than our old cottage garden favorite. It grows quickly into large clumps, making a stunning ground cover or container specimen, although you may need to trim it several times in a mixed container to stop it from swallowing its neighbors. It likes full sun or dappled shade and well-drained soil with occasional watering. Grows to 18 inches tall and wide in zones 5–9.
Sunburst aeonium (Aeonium decorum ‘Sunburst’)
Large rosettes in soft green and creamy yellow stand tall on stout stems. In full sun these take on a pink margin, playing beautifully to the color scheme. Grows to 18 inches tall and wide in zones 9–11, but will stay smaller as a seasonal container plant in cooler climates.
Sedum (Sedum variety)
Although the exact variety of this dusky purple sedum is not known, you can easily find several with a similar habit and color, such as Chocolate Drop and Vera Jameson. All are perennials that are hardy in zones 4–9 or colder.
Fireworks fountain grass (Pennisetum setaceum ‘Fireworks’)
While hardy in zones 9–11, cooler-climate gardeners can still enjoy this as a colorful annual grass. The blades are striped hot pink, burgundy, green, and white, the color intensifying during the summer just as the purple tassels appear. Grows to 3 feet tall and 2 feet wide where hardy, but usually smaller as an annual.
Crème Fraiche deutzia (Deutzia gracilis ‘Crème Fraiche’)
This is a dwarf deciduous shrub for the landscape or container that blooms with a profusion of white flowers in spring and boasts resistance to deer. The variegated foliage is a clean white and green, although some branches occasionally revert to solid green and must be cut off. Grows to 2 feet tall and wide in zones 5–8.
Finishing Touch
Pink Wonder fan flower (Scaevola aemula ‘Pink Wonder’)
An exceptional annual that blooms profusely from spring until fall in full sun or partial shade. The fan-shaped clear pink flowers do not need deadheading, and the plant is drought tolerant and heat resistant. It will meander through and trail from containers and baskets and is hardy only in zones 10–11, so usually enjoyed as an annual.
Bacopa (Sutera cordata)
This is a favorite for adding to containers with its trailing habit and starry white flowers that bloom all summer in full sun or partial sun. Bacopa is hardy in zones 9–11, but will often overwinter in cooler climates—cut back hard in spring to rejuvenate it or enjoy as an annual.
About the Book:
Create a foliage-driven garden that dazzles!
Although seductive, flowers, by their fleeting nature, are a fickle base to provide long-lasting gardens with year-round interest. Tackle this problem with the advice in Gardening with Foliage First. Learn how to first build a framework of foliage and then layer in flowers and other artistic elements as the finishing touches. This simple, recipe-style approach to garden design features 127 combinations for both sunny and shady gardens that work for a variety of climates and garden challenges.
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