With so many options at hand , it ’s easy to contrive creative combinations , says Ian McGreevy , Four Star ’s Signature Garden Designer . In this two - part article , he offers his tips for selecting the good plant to produce young combinations customers will get laid .
Ian McGreevy , Four Star ’s Signature Garden Designer
pick out containers wiselyFor many consumers , a unique or colourful container is the finishing touch to a compounding of different potpourri . For those who opt the finished container , Ian has a few suggestion to be creative :
Start with plant peak and habit“Different elevation make the design interesting , and the guideline , “ Thriller , Filler , Spiller ” really works ! ” articulate Ian . “ spiller will ‘ activate ’ a bare container and make it more interesting . I especially like to utilise plants like Hedera , Verbena , Sweet Caroline or Illusion Ipomoea , Dichondra and Lysimachia in hanging baskets where they can trail down a few feet . ”
Choosing the proper pot is as important as the combo itself , and most plants look capital in a blue , indifferent , stone or terra cotta locoweed like those pictured here in Four Star ’s Display Gardens .
He generally endeavor to match a thriller with the height and width of its pot . “ Be careful pick thrillers as some can get too big for a intermediate - sized corporation , like Graceful Grasses King Tut Cyperus , most Salvia , Senorita Cleome and Helianthus , ” he notes . “ seek using thrillers in baskets and small pots , like delicate Gaura and Angelonia , or smaller tropic plants like Dracaena , Croton , Graceful Grasses Prince Tut Cyperus , fern , Hippo Hypoestes and Heart to Heart Caladium . ”
Four Star ’s catalog lists vigor ratings for variety , and that can be really utile when selecting plants for a combining , he says . “ Vigorous plant can quickly outgrow their neighbors , so seek to match the energy ratings for all plant in a combination . Plants with strong energy include Supertunia Vista Petunia , Dragon Wing Begonia , Lantana , Cyperus , ColorBlaze Solenostemon and Sweet Caroline Ipomoea . ”
The popularity of shade compounding proceed to develop , and graphic designer in the industry are using a extensive variety of tone - well-disposed plants as elements in everything from small baskets to large upright containers .
look at the colorColor may be the most important circumstance for many consumers buying combinations . Many expert propose you study color trends such as Pantone ’s Color of the Year and surveys of consumers ’ color preferences as a planning assistance .
Ian care to start with the interaction of the plant . “ Look for flowers / foliage that draw colour from each other . brilliant colors are easy to accent with brilliant fleeceable , white or black . Use lily-white or dark green to emphasize softer colors or make the third color pop ! ”
Top ten best marketer Grand Traverse offers a mix of vigorous Supertunias in trending , saturate Charles Edward Berry tones customers bed . pop combining Joy plays with coloring material to smashing success : the softer color of Supertunia Honey and Superbells Tropical Sunrise never look the same two days in a row , while the cheery red ink of Superbells Red pops in line .
He also suggests an easy method for come up with successful color combinations . “ pop with two plants of a standardized color , then add a neutral and an accent vividness . For case , a risque - and - yellow stack with Unplugged So Blue Salvia , Superbells Blue Moon Punch Calibrachoa , Snow Princess Lobularia , and Luscious Lemonade Lantana . ”
Ian also tries to create contrast , using smartness and impregnation in more unostentatious one - color combos . “ I might amalgamate subdued Superbells Double Chiffon Calibrachoa and Bright Lights Double Moonglow Osteospermum with richer Garnet Lace Ipomoea and Goldilocks Rocks Bidens for a yellow combo that ’s unsubdivided but effective . ”Foliage can be a house decorator ’s admirer , he notes . “ Fun , variegate leafage can be just as exciting as flush in a lot of places , and there are so many great options ! Look to tropicals like sum to Heart Caladium , Pegasus Begonia , Hedera , Colocasia , Hippo Hypoestes , ColorBlaze Solenostemon , Ipomoea and others . ”
Foliage can be as exciting as flowers in a combo like Rhymes , which features new Heart to Heart Caladiums mixed with bright coloring and varying texture . American Anthem proves that a familiar loyal colour combination can be made bracing again by find new contrast in grain among the most popular varieties .
If you need more idea for color combinations that oeuvre , Ian suggest taking a look at colour theory books or creating a collecting of exposure of combinations you have like . “ Try this : edit out pictures of your pet plant out of an old catalogue to quickly arrange and examine out young combos . ”
For more information and tips on create great combinations , click here .
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