Pots of Scarlet Planting Ideas Combining Deep Reds and Dark Purples Will Guarantee a Display with Depth and Drama Right Through to the Autumn 2

Pots of scarlet planting ideas Combining deep reds and dark purples will guarantee a display with depth and drama right through to the autumn 2

WORDS SARAH PRICE PHOTOGRAPHS ANDREW MONTGOMERY 1

Pinks in pots Come July I’m reaching for richer, more sumptuous colours and creating bolder statements. Plants It felt like a guilty pleasure to use these Dianthus, not as classy perhaps as their in-vogue species Quantities for 3 medium-sized pots of counterparts, D. carthusianorum and D. cruentus. There’s a faded splendour about their petals, dianthus with red orache, and 4 small which look like pieces of ruffled, crimson velvet. They also have an intoxicating, sweet clove- pots of single dianthus. More dianthus like scent, just the way ‘pinks’ should. I get an instant satisfaction from putting dramatic, rich may be required depending on the tones together. The staging of these cast iron pots, against a pale green door, plays on the size of the plants sourced. complementary colours of the plant: glaucous green leaf and stem, and the scarlet petals. 1 Atriplex hortensis var. rubra AMOUNT 3 How to achieve the look BLOOMS July to August Colours and shapes look good on a flight of steps. Look out for HEIGHT up to 120cm Red orache Atriplex hortensis var. rubra is interesting variations on traditional designs: 2 Dianthus chinensis x barbatus easy to grow. The leaves are edible and look the detailed bands around the iron pots and Elation Series Red (Dianthus good in salads, a vegetable plot or in a vase their pronounced rims cast shadow detail and caryophyllus ‘Fenbow Nutmeg where its purple foliage adds instant depth. make a wonderful silhouette. Clove’ would also look good. It seeds freely after flowering, a quality I love, AMOUNT 7 especially as the purple seedlings are so easy Compost and care BLOOMS June to August to see and move if in an undesirable position. Dianthus like well-aerated and free-draining HEIGHT 60cm soil, qualities of their natural habitat, so make Choosing pots sure the pot has good drainage holes and take Suppliers Repetition and change of scale is a powerful care to protect plants from excessive winter Thompson & Morgan design principle. Look out for pots of the same wet. Given a sunny position, the dianthus will Tel 0844 2485383, shape and material but that come in a series bloom extensively but deadhead the plants to www.thompson-morgan.com of sizes. The classic flowerpot shape looks prolong the drama. After flowering, save the Pots and photoshoot: Artefacts at the fantastic repeated at different scales and on red orache seeds and consider taking cuttings Medicine Garden, Cobham. Tel 07894 different heights. This arrangement would of the dianthus as it is an annual plant. 149865, www.artefacts.uk.net

43 planting ideas

Rustic herbs Herbs are an appropriate choice for these pretty, rustic tins that once contained hearty French Plants stews. The writing on the tins is beautiful and the italic font exactly matches the dainty tubular 1 Carum carvi orange red flowers of this small penstemon. Arranged in a line, they could go along a generous AMOUNT 1 kitchen windowsill or small ledge on a garden wall. The smaller scale makes you pay closer BLOOMS June to August attention to the detail of the plants and the herbs can of course be used in the kitchen. HEIGHT 60cm Whatever the size of the planting, I look to create a pattern of repeating colour and form. 2 Helichrysum italicum Here, silver hummocks of the strong-smelling curry plant Helichrysum italicum and the fresh, AMOUNT 3 frothy green of the caraway Carum carvi are alternated, leading your eye along the sunny display. BLOOMS July to September HEIGHT 90cm How to achieve the look 3 Penstemon pinifolius Colours and shapes Choosing pots AMOUNT 3 Penstemon pinifolius is a compact, evergreen Drill holes in the bottom of the tins and brush BLOOMS June onwards cultivar with needle-like foliage and bright yet a waterproof layer of clear lacquer or varnish HEIGHT 25cm dainty tubular orange-red flowers. Its small over the tins and labels. stature means it is often grown within an Suppliers alpine display. Other plants to consider in Compost and care Constantine Garden Nursery this arrangement are chives, which would These are plants that appreciate sunshine Fir Tree Farm, Falmouth, create a fresh upright accent. In contrast the and well-drained ground. Mix in grit to make Cornwall TR11 5PL. wonderfully fragrant Corsican mint, Mentha sure your compost is free draining. Caraway Tel 01326 340593, requienii, would hug the compost and slowly is a hardy biennial so will need replacing. www.firtreefarmnursery.co.uk creep over the sides of the tin. Chard, Beta Regularly snip away at the caraway and curry Herbal Haven vulgaris, could be used instead of penstemon plant to maintain compact plants. Though Saffron Walden, Essex CB11 3YL. to pick out the red italic font, while fennel, only 20cm tall, Penstemon pinifolius will Tel 01799 540695, Foeniculum vulgare would create a similar eventually spread outwards to 25cm and so in www.herbalhaven.com feathered effect to the caraway. time will need potting on or planting out.

44 planting ideas

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Still life

Lilies are so perfect in form that a stem or two is enough. Could you imagine an angel holding Plants more than one delicate stem in Botticelli’s The Annunciation? The secret here is the deep rich 1 Atriplex hortensis var. rubra plum, present in flower bud, bloom, foliage, and stem. The dense, dark purple spikes of the AMOUNT 1 grass Molinia caerulea ‘Edith Dudszus’ and the similarly rich foliage of the red orache Atriplex BLOOMS July to August hortensis var. rubra allow the exquisite trumpet-shaped form of the lily Lilium formosanum var. HEIGHT Up to 120cm pricei to be brought into relief. These are plants with staying power. The molinia will provide an 2 Molinia caerulea attractive veil of colour from late summer through to autumn, while the flower and seeds of ‘Edith Dudszus’ the atriplex look beautiful later in the season. The modest pot, an old milk can with flaking AMOUNT 1 paint, brings this sophisticated selection of plants back down to earth. BLOOMS July onwards HEIGHT 90cm How to achieve the look 3 Lilium formosanum var. pricei Colours and shapes Compost and care AMOUNT 1 Lilium formosanum var. pricei is shorter than Prefers a sunny spot. The molinia and the BLOOMS Summer the similar looking more common L. regale. It atriplex will help keep the lily’s roots in the HEIGHT 30cm-45cm grows to just 30-45cm tall making it ideal for shade. Plant the lily bulbs in autumn, so their smaller pots. The highly scented flowers are roots can develop over winter, 12 cm deep in Suppliers full-sized and have pronounced deep burgundy a loam-based potting compost such as John Beth Chatto Gardens and Nursery veining, and a fresh green throat instead of Innes no. 2 and add grit. The bulbs are hardy, Elmstead Market, Colchester, the more common yellow. Try experimenting but the shoots appear early and may be Essex CO7 7DB. with other varieties but stick to just one damaged by frost unless sheltered. Watch out Tel 01206 822007, variety per pot. ‘Edith Dudszus’ is one of the for lily beetle. They are scarlet and black and www.bethchatto.co.uk shorter more compact molinia cultivars and very visible and need to be picked off by hand. Sarah Raven grows to 90cm. M. caerulea ‘Moorhexe’ is an Dead-head faded blooms but leave foliage on Tel 0845 092 0283, alternative: slightly shorter with near black, the bulb to die back naturally. Make sure the www.sarahraven.com well-defined seedheads. pot is well drained through the winter months.