Filed under: Gardening, Flowers
Like any great room, a great garden needs to balance style and substance. Here, the spaces that do it right.
St Luke's in New York City. Photo: Marie Viljoen
The most important element in this simple but arresting planting in a narrow space is architectural -- the cross-hatched brick wall. It acts as a textured red canvas backdrop for the strikingly erect blue Agapanthus (African lily) and soft mounds of yellow Hakonechloa (Japanese forest grass). Sometimes, restraint pays off: The red, yellow and blue are pulled together by the lilies' green strappy leaves and the variegation in the grasses.
The cultural fusion works beautifully, if unexpectedly. Hakonechloa likes shade. Agapanthus likes sun. But along the wall, facing north, the flowers are protected. They're receiving enough eastern sunlight to bloom, while the grass is shaded from the southern heat.
Functional. Simple. Clever. Interesting. High marks.