As March draws near, the sun and its warmth welcome and beckon
this human into the garden. I notice the containers filled with
winter greens look a bit bedraggled. I can help that by removing
the worst looking by cutting out the deadened greens frozen
in place. It’s too soon to plant spring pansies in the
containers gracing my front walk, and unlike the others, the
greens in the woven wall box near the front door are not frozen
in place. So I happily replace them with my collection of silk
flowers --yellow daffs and purple tulips--- until I can plant
pansies.
But it’s not too soon to think about color schemes for
this year’s pansies and pussy willow combinations. Not
too soon to cut back the last of the grasses that so faithfully
and beautifully keep my interest this winter, especially those
whose fronds and tassels were backlit by the late winter afternoon
sun. Lovely to look at and then let my eyes travel to the purple
shadows of winter created across the back lawn by the bare branched
mature silver maple or the deeper wider shadows cast by white
pine, spruce, and hemlock.
Ah, back to the subject of color and spring pansies and violets.
So sweet and such a large collection available in the garden
centers and farm stands usually late in March when the plants
are hardened off and ready to withstand the cold of the outdoors.
Shall it be blue, yellow, and white or purple, pink, and blue.
Or the white edged purple with the tiny pale yellow violets.
Or orange and blue and maroon? Or should I contrast the large
and the small with lots of the smaller violets in a bold color
with a few larger flowered pansies in a paler complementary
color?
When considering color its best to start with the classic color
wheel orientation. Primary colors of yellow, red, and blue display
well with their opposite (on the color wheel) or complementary
color. So yellow and purple, blue and orange, or red and green.
Color complements when paired visually together act to intensify
each other. So blue reads more blue, yellow more yellow, orange
more orange, and so on.
Add the adjacent color of either complement (for example to
orange and blue, add yellow), and wow! a stunning combination.
Remember that shades (color plus black—dark like sitting
in shade) or tints (color plus white) follow the same basic
rule. Also remember that color harmonies are wonderful in combination—indeed
the only way to truly use red and orange together without cringing.
So red, orange, yellow and the color that makes this hot harmonic
combination work--purple (can be leaf or bloom). Notice that
color harmonies can occur anywhere on the wheel. They are simply
a progression of colors with a shared pigment.
Have fun with this dream scheme until we can actually put on
hands on the flowers and push them into fertile soil.
Copyright Maria von Brincken 2004
Action Items for Busy Gardeners
Garden clean-up on these warm inviting days. Time to trim the
grasses and other perennials left for winter interest.
Upcoming Events
March 16, 2004 at 2:30 pm New England Flower Show. Color Slide
Lecture topic: “Revival Style Dooryard Garden for Antique
and Contemporary Homes.”
March 18, 2004 Horticulture Symposium 2004 at the New Canaan
Nature Center, New Canaan Conn. “Shade Gardening: Design
Ideas, Choice Perennials and Combinations,” illustrates
Maria's knowledge of native plants as well as her creative and
innovative ideas on combining flowers, trees and shrubs for
the landscape.
About Maria
I am available for garden consultation, design, and installation.
Please refer to my website for additional information: www.mariavonbrincken.com
Please feel free to e-mail me with any comments that you may
have. I would appreciate you sending this letter to others that
you think may be interested in this information.
They can subscribe directly to the newsletter by sending an
e-mail to maria@mariavonbrincken.com In the body of the subject
line and message write: subscribe garden notes.
If this newsletter does not suit you, I will gladly delete
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Enjoy a garden moment in your life today.
Copyright 2004 Maria von Brincken
www.mariavonbrincken.com
