Gardeners, like all artists, use the power of colour to create and enhance the mood and impact of their landscape design. Through our understanding of the properties of colour we can elevate our compositions balance and unity.

Each colour holds its own lexicon of meanings, both personally and globally. Whether you fall into the category of a pictorial landscape gardener or and avid horticulturist, the colours you select in your garden will determine its emotional value and character. Some techniques that will aid your colour palette selection include placing the blossoms of your selected plants together to see how their colours interact. It is also beneficial to place differing background materials (vines, shrubs, trees, plants) against your blossoms to see which ones best aid your colour design, and whether you want your leaves to complement or contrast your blossoms. Colour themes that you can create in your garden include:

Monotone Gardening

This glamorous gardening concept, first used by Vita Sackville-West at Sissinghurst, refers to the use of a solitary colour (in Vita