This year we are learning more about color in the garden,
and developing a palette of plants for each color that we can use in our San
Francisco Bay Area gardens. English garden writer Penelope Hobhouse is our
guide, and we're using her book, Color in Your Garden to better understand
color. Her information and guidance can help us add reds to our garden.
The color range explored in the red chapter includes full
strength red, or darkened or shaded reds with blue or brown, leaning towards
purple, maroon, and almost black. They are on the cold side of the reds, and
contain no warming yellow. Names used to
describe these reds include crimson, magenta, carmine, cherry (cerise), bronze,
maroon, claret, and burgundy, amethyst, fuchsia, and so forth.
Spring:
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| Rose |
|
 |
| Flame Tree |
|
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| Giant Trillium |
|
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| Gooseberry (Chinese Lanterns) |
|
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| Azalea |
|
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| Tulips |
|
Hobhouse writes that red is the most bold and provocative
of spectral hues. It appears most vibrant when enriched by complementary
mid-greens of trees, plants, and grass. Recall the strong impact of the red
azaleas lining the green Wedding Garden at Filoli (see Spring Details at Filoli). Red
is easily spotted in the tropics to ensure pollination; and red seeds are
easily seen in temperate climates to ensure dispersal. Nature uses red
sparingly, except in the fall when leaves turn red.
Summer:
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| Unknown Inflorescence |
|
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| Kangaroo Paws |
|
The texture of petals or leaves influence how reds appear.
Shiny petals may appear lighter and brighter than velvety petals. Foliage may
appear more matt. The colors are often richest when the sun's rays are longest
and reddest in the evening, especially glowing when light shines through a leaf
towards the observer.
Fall:
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| Vitis |
|
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| Toyon Berries |
|
Hobhouse recommends pairing flowers and foliage that are
"linked" on the color wheel, or are complementary to either heat up
or cool down the affect (some of these concepts are well beyond my gardening
abilities, but good to know about)! She also states that the emotional
qualities of red make their strongest impact if they come as a surprise.
Winter:
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| Camellia |
|
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| Rambling Rose |
|
Red foliage is especially prominent in the fall, but can
also appear in new foliage (such as Photinia). Use these colors to your
advantage in the garden design.
Foliage:
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| Liquid Amber in fall |
|
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| Succulents trimmed in red |
|
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| Flax |
|
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| Unknown |
|
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| Maroon leaves (almost black) |
|
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| Prunus |
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