Designing With Red in the Midwest

A color that can make or break your design, red adds a splash of excitement to your garden

Even the most intrepid gardeners might admit a fear of the color red , specially us easily - going and soft - mannered Midwesterners . Red ’s energy carries connotation of warmness , Passion of Christ , and even danger . In the garden , red stops us in our path and evokes a response . Too fervid , too spectacular , too much ? Just right-hand ? February is a notoriously dismal month in the Midwest , but for Valentine ’s Day calendar month I ’m ask round the dynamical energy of red to add a spark to your wintertime daydreams and future summertime colour palette . Learn to sleep together red by keeping these tips in intellect .

Tomato vs. berry

Botanically , tomato plant ARE berry , but for today let ’s not split ascendant hairs . When designing with violent , start by looking for warm or cool undertones . Tomato loss have warm orange note of hand , like the glowing reds in autumnal sugar maples ( Acer genus Saccharum , Zones 3–8)—or in juicy tomatoes ! Berry reds have purply undertone , like ripe cherry or raspberries . Tomato and berry reds run to collide if they are placed anywhere near each other . In worldwide , tomato reds blend well with other affectionate gloss , and perhaps a pop of cool purple for dividing line , while berry reds work well with shades of rose and cooler colors to summate depth . Pink and violent are often very tricksy to combine . I find berry reds more absolvitory in most Midwestern coloring palettes and am more careful when incorporating tomato bolshie . Maybe I ’d find otherwise in Arizona ?

Get a second opinion

If you ’re range plants or seeds based on pic from a web site or print catalog , do an cyberspace image hunting of the diverseness in question . Comparing epitome from multiple sources , or exhibit on different sieve such as your laptop versus your smartphone , give way you a more accurate idea of the true coming into court of different shade of loss . You ’ll also see how other garden designer have creatively or poorly incorporate your plant in a larger planting . Of course , nothing beats experimenting in person when shopping at your favorite independent garden center .

Blend with foliage

As in any good design , foliage plants entwine together unlikely seeming coloring material pairings to make different loss good neighbors in a plan . The spectacular array of color combination found in flame nettle ( Plectranthus scutellarioides , Zones 10–11 ) are always adept in this office . Silver- and atomic number 79 - foliage plants form well with both cerise and tomato reds to contribute effeminacy and a resting slur for eyes when take in unusual coloring combination . hear textural silvers such as atomic number 47 dollar bill Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree ( Eucalyptus cinerea , Zones 8–10 ) and silver gray salvia ( Salvia argenteaand cvs . , Zones 5–8 ) , or stress the graceful tawny natural spring of ‘ Toffee Twist ’ sedge ( Carex‘Toffee Twist ’ , Zones 7–10 ) . place of dreary leafage heighten play and keep tomato Red River from being too crying .

Experiment with short-season bloomers

With industrial plant that only peak for a few weeks , feel gratuitous to experiment . If a combination does n’t suit you , you ’ll only have to attend at it for a short time ! Bulbs like gladiolus ( Gladiolusspp . and cvs . , Zones 7–10 ) and lily ( Liliumspp . and cvs . , Zones 3–8 ) fit into this category , as do Red River - flowered perennials . Red perennials that are sturdy in the Midwest are uncommon , so a soda pop of bolshy in the repeated border provides an intriguing highlight for a few workweek before fading into the background .

Spectacular Reds for the Midwest

Annuals

‘ Karma Choc ’ dahlia . pic : Erin Presley

‘ Turkish Red ’ breadseed poppy . Photo : Erin Presley

Bat - confront cuphea . photograph : Erin Presley

These romanticist burgundy blooms are even richer than actual deep brown .

The burnished deep red efflorescence with disconsolate over-embellished eye of ‘ Turkish Red ’ breadseed poppy are arresting in the early summer garden . This plant reseed jubilantly .

Bat - faced cuphea have charming flyspeck faces with reddened pinna and grim snouts . They seem to peep out from mounding foliage . This is a high temperature lover .

Perennials

‘ Rubra Plena ’ fern leafage peony . Photo : Erin Presley

Scarlet rose mallow . picture : Erin Presley

This is a cherished , long - lived , early blooming peony with carmine red heyday .

The skyrocketing , narrow habit and refined bloom shape of vermilion uprise mallow are a welcome change to hard hybridized hibiscus varieties . This mallow is astonishingly unfearing here in Zone 5 and is a great nominee for torpid , gay areas .

Amerindic pink . exposure : Erin Presley

Royal catchfly . picture : Erin Presley

The cheery , tubelike ruddy bloom ( tip with yellow-bellied ) of Indian pinkish render a surprise in partial to full shade .

imperial catchfly is a drought - tolerant native with a relaxed habit that weave among other prairie and savannah perennials .

Red always total interest , in biography and gardening , so do n’t be afraid to embrace the passionateness , push , and complexness of this color . Combinations and experimentation may leave in concord or discord , but none are improper . At the conclusion of the day , looker always lies in the eye of the beholder .

— Erin Presley is a horticulturist at Olbrich Botanical Gardens in Madison , Wisconsin .

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red-themed planting

This red-themed planting incorporates different shades of red flowers and foliage from plants such as ‘Redhead’ coleus (Plectranthus scutellarioides‘Redhead’, Zones 10–11), ‘Painted Lady’ eyelash sage (Salvia blepharophylla’Painted Lady', Zones 7–9), ‘Dr. Les’ dahlia (Dahlia‘Dr. Les’, Zones 8–11), and ‘Inferno’ copperleaf (Acalypha wilkesiana’Inferno', Zones 10–11). Glossy black foliage in the form of black varnish plant (Pseuderanthemum carruthersiivar.atropurpureum, Zones 10–11) adds contrast in the planting’s center.Photo: Erin Presley

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The berry-colored red of Easy Wave®Burgundy Velour spreading petunia (Petunia‘PAS933562’, Zones 10–11) combined with the tomato red of SunPatiens®Compact Fire Red impatiens (Impatiens‘SAKIMPO37’, Zones 10–11) might not be to everyone’s taste.Photo: Erin Presley

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red and pink flowers

Do red and black look good together? What about red and pink? Vibrant shades of red may look too garish next to certain colors. Compare images from multiple sources, or shop at a nursery to make sure the shade of red you’re thinking of adding to your garden will look right in person.Photos: Erin Presley

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sunset-inspired planting

This sunset-inspired planting relies on the dark foliage of ‘Mystic Illusion’ dahlia (Dahlia‘Mystic Illusion’, Zones 8–11) and the amber tones in ‘Toffee Twist’ sedge and ‘Henna’ coleus (Plectranthus scutellarioides‘Henna’, Zones 10–11) to complement the bronze foliage and red blooms of ‘Nightlife Red’ begonia (Begonia semperflorens‘Nightlife Red’, Zones 9–11).Photo: Erin Presley

‘Atom’ gladiolus

This ‘Atom’ gladiolus (Gladiolus‘Atom’, Zones 8–10) is too bright for my tastes. Thankfully its bloom period is quite short, so it will only be part of this container planting for a small part of the summer.Photo: Erin Presley

‘Karma Choc’ dahlia