Look ma, No Flowers!

Flowers are beautiful. They provide incredible color and interest to our containers and gardens. But they also require deadheading, fertilizing, more deadheading and a midsummer nap to perform at their best. And, if you are like me, the last bloom drops right before your big party!

Why not forego flowers and plant a container of all foliage? These are some of the best options for time-pressed gardeners. The containers on my back patio are all foliage. Because after I have been out in my client’s gardens deadheading all day it’s the last thing I want to do when I get home. Best of all, containers made up of great foliage plants will look better in September then when you plant them in June. You can’t really say that about flowers.

Creating a great composition using foliage is not that different from getting dressed in the morning. It’s all about combining patterns. Choose one boldly patterned foliage plant, one that might be a bit smaller and then a neutral. Of course, all the plants you put together should enjoy the same light and moisture requirements. I often go around the nursery with my inspiration plant in hand and find out what it looks good with. Some of my favorite foliage plants include: heuchera, dichondra ‘Silver Falls’, coleus, colocasia, strobilanthes and cannas.

So this summer why not focus on foliage? After all, nothing says “enjoy that glass of wine” like a container that needs no maintenance.