The Garden Life: Don’t be afraid to take a colorful approach when selecting plants

Most gardens are at their peak of flower bloom in the month of June. This is the time of year when nurseries and garden centers draw us in with sheer flower power. Even a beginner with a newly planted garden can have a blooming border by mid-summer.

For most of us, the gardening obsession ripens with the peak of summer color. The experience of planting a perfect color combination delights the soul. Once we get it right, we commit ourselves to do whatever it takes to bring more color to the garden.

Anyone who dallies in the field of creativity will encourage new gardeners to try anything once. Time will be the ultimate teacher so for now let the ideas flow. Trying to control the nature of a garden is a full-time job, often fraught with frustration. Chaos is a more reliable helpmate to the creative spirit than control is.

The Oriental poppies are reliable, hardy perennials, easy to grow if planted in a sunny location with well-drained soil. If you have heavy soil, add planting compost and a handful of grit before planting. Think of them growing in their homeland of Armenia, where they emerge from rocky slopes and in dry meadows. Their large taproot ensures a tolerance of drought once established.

Few flowering plants can compete with the strength of Oriental poppy color. My favorite is the first poppy I ever planted, Papaver orientale “Allegro,” with its bright orange-scarlet flowers and bold, black basal markings. They bloom in striking scarlet, vermillion and hot pink with a steady stream of new introductions in purples, plum, salmon and white.

For a moment in June, the Oriental poppy appears to be the perfect perennial. Alas, if I did not at least comment on the dark side of growing poppies I would feel as if I had introduced my sister to Mr. Wonderful without mentioning his proclivity to become Mr. Hyde. Once the flowers are spent, the only thing left is a scraggly clump of broad, lance-shaped or toothed, rough, hairy foliage. It sounds like a weed and looks weedy, too.

My large planting of poppies sits at the foot of a dramatic Tibetan cherry tree. The unattractive foliage is hidden from close inspection behind a 2½-foot-high cotoneaster groundcover. Another solution would be to surround the poppies with a strong foliaged, late flowering perennial such as chrysanthemums or fall blooming asters. Christopher Lloyd suggested that after flowering, the plants could be cut right down, including the foliage, and be interplanted with summer bedding plants.

For many years now, gardeners in the Northwest have focused on perennials in the garden for flower color. We grew tired of the process of planting annuals each year, which also meant having to live with large, empty spaces in beds and borders until annuals were ready to plant. Many gardeners have finally found a comfortable medium point between these two extremes.

The first things every gardener should focus on are the bones of the plant world, the trees, shrubs and groundcovers. After that, we can rely on perennials to supply the bulk of seasonal color interest. Annuals fill the gaps that remain. This gives us the chance to highlight any area of the garden when it needs it most. Annuals are perfect along an entry walkway leading to the front door or in planters on decks and patios.

Whether you are planting annuals or perennials, before you go to the nursery, take the measurement of the area you are planting. A 5-by-10-foot bed is 50 square feet (multiply the length by the width). When you find the plants you want, make sure you know how tall and wide they will eventually grow. Ask the nursery personnel how many plants you will need to fill the space or read the plant label and do your own math.

Always choose the healthiest looking perennials and annuals. Don’t be skimpy. In this case, more is better. As you visit nurseries and other gardens this summer, keep an eye open for the perfect perennial that could take over the job that this year’s annuals are doing.

When we begin to garden seriously, we start looking a season ahead and often into the next year. In the process, we gratify this grand obsession to fill the garden with flower color.

Robb Rosser is a WSU-certified Master Gardener. Reach him at Write2Robb@aol.com.