More Plant Combinations

More plant combinations that I like. This is on the west side of my house today, April 25. The plants are: Dicentra spectabilis (common bleeding heart), Vinca minor (periwinkle), and Lamium maculatum 'Purple Dragon'.

Travel to England, Volcanic Ash, and Plant Combinations

I had the opportunity to travel to England two weeks ago for work. My trip turned into an extended stay since a volcano erupted in Iceland, spewed volcanic ash, and ended up closing UK airspace for six days. In my free time, I did have the chance to explore some gardens and saw some wonderful plant combinations. Attached are a few of my favorites.

Snowdrops Are Gone. Minor Bulbs Are Blooming

What a difference a few weeks make. My snowdrops and crocus have gone to seed and all the minor bulbs have bloomed. I've done much better with the scale in the minor bulbs as I've planted a lot more to achieve a better effect.

Charleston Window Boxes

Here are two very pleasing boxes: hot colors and monochromatic (all-white). I think both have their color schemes down correctly. The hot colors box contains pansies, asparagus fern, reddish spikes, blue and orange nemesia, ivy, and an orange daisy-like flower that I couldn't identify. In color wheel lingo, the colors are "analogous-complementary" as there are three adjacent colors (red, orange, and yellow) plus the complement of one of the colors: violet-blue. The all-white box contains geraniums, impatiens, variegated ivy, and I think, bracopa and nemesia. The colors of the flowers in the boxes work well together within the box and work well with the color of the house.

Glorious Gardens, Charleston, SC

I'm on spring break and had the opportunity to go on the Glorious Garden tour sponsored by the Historic Charleston Foundation. There were 10 private homes which opened their gardens as part of the tour. I thought there were some common themes across all 10 gardens: all formal (large use of symmetry and boxwood parterres); all gated; very little if any perennials and grasses (a few used dwarf mondo grass as a ground cover, but I am not that familiar with mondo grass and whether it is a true grass); predominantly shrubs, small trees (Japanese maples, crepe myrtles, camellias), and vines; some minor use of annuals for color (pansies, impatiens). What's somewhat interesting to me is that the main use of color in the garden is in the front of the houses in window boxes. I'll post a number of the window boxes that I liked once I return to Chicago and can upload them.