How to Color Map your Garden

 

It’s all about flower colors!

Knowing how to use color in the landscape is one of the most fundamental aspects of good garden design. Color sets the mood, dictates style, and lends cohesiveness. Using color properly can mean the difference between a show-worthy garden or a chaotic mess. Basically, it’s understanding the basics of color theory and how to color map your garden.  Then you can be well on the way to creating your own beautiful outdoor space.

COLOR THEORY BASICS

Color theory is the study of how colors work together and affect perception. It involves the color wheel, which shows the relationships between colors.  It introduces the concepts of primary, secondary, and tertiary colors.

Warm colors like red and yellow bring energy, while cool colors like blue and green create a sense of calm. Neutral colors like white and gray can be used as transitions or stand-alone schemes. Value and intensity also play a role, with lighter and darker shades creating contrast.

Understanding color theory helps in creating visually appealing compositions by utilizing color relationships and variations.

There are even color wheels made specifically for gardeners.

 

INDIVIDUAL COLORS

Individual flower colors have their own symbolic meanings. Here is an insight to each color:

White 

Is the most versatile in the landscape, cools us down on hot summer days, and sparkles in the dark October evenings.

Purple

Is the most requested flower color, associated with originality, uniqueness, and royalty. It’s also known to calm the mind.

Blue

So restful and calm, Blue is the color of tranquility and aids our concentration and intuition.

Red

The color of excitement, power, and luck, and projects an air of confidence.

Yellow

Helps us to feel cheerful and optimistic, enhances our mental processes and clarity of mind.

Orange

Orange is the hottest, most flamboyant color in the spectrum, shown to excite emotions and even increase appetite.

Green

Is the most restful color to our eyes, balances and alleviates anxiety, and is a neutral color in the landscape.

CHOOSING A COLOR SCHEME

Garden color schemes are influenced by many factors including climate, culture, regional style, and personal taste. Colors are used to celebrate the seasons.  In winter, it’s red, green, and white. For Spring it’s pastel hues. In summer, it’s warmer colors. Traditional fall hues including orange, brown, yellow, and burgundy mimic the colors of the harvest and changing leaves.

When choosing a garden color palette, consider these factors:

Set the mood:

Do you want your garden to feel calming or exciting? Use subdued color combinations of blue, lavender, and white for a quiet meditation space.  Maybe an energizing one of hot colors of red, orange, and yellow where you entertain guests.

Consider your surroundings:

 When choosing colors, take cues from the existing features on your property such as your house color, pathways, walls, furniture, and fencing. Is your yard surrounded by verdant woodlands, or is it a small urban lot or apartment balcony? How do you use your outdoor space? Select colors that will complement the setting.

Cold vs. hot:

 Cool colors are associated with the cooler season of spring and can also be used to refresh a shady oasis in the heat of summer. Hotter colors are less prone to washing out in the harsh summer sun. Use attention-grabbing colors such as red and orange judiciously, as a focal point or occasional splashes of color so as not to overwhelm the overall design.

Keep it simple:

 Choose no more than two or three main colors or a monochromatic color scheme. Using too many different colors can make the design feel cluttered or lacking cohesion. Other colors can be used sparingly for pops of contrast and to enhance the main colors.

Change it up:

 Color schemes can be varied for different parts of the yard such as garden rooms, beds, borders, containers, side yards, water gardens, and vegetable plots. To lend continuity, choose one color such as blue as the main color and vary the other colors around it from one area to another.

Create repetition:

 Use the same colors to pull your eye through the landscape and unify the design. Repeat those colors in garden beds, furnishings, hardscape, and structures.

Light:

 Observe how colors are affected by light during different seasons and times of the day. Use brighter colors such as gold, yellow, chartreuse, white, and silver to brighten up shady areas.

Include your favorite colors:

 Though this might seem obvious, using your favorite colors in your landscape will make you want to spend more time in your outdoor space.

Break the rules:

 Though a color wheel is a good starting point for using color in the garden, there are no hard and fast rules. Don’t be afraid to try new things.

These insightful tips curtesy of ©gardendesign.com

Photo by: dvoevnore / Shutterstock.

 

Related: How To Create Gorgeous Garden Color Schemes – TUTORING YOU