Text by Elizabeth Czapski
We might be several months into 2022, but we’re still not over Pantone’s Color of the Year—Very Peri. We kicked off the year with some inspiration for incorporating the shade, a distinctive periwinkle with hints of violet-red, into your interiors, but now is the perfect time to bring the hue outside to enliven your garden for summer. We chatted with Katie Dubow of Garden Media Group to get helpful tips from gardening experts for adding this versatile color to your landscape.
“Very Peri came as a sweet surprise to those of us in the garden industry, as it is often a color found naturally in the garden,” she says. “From delicate blossoms to vibrant foliage, Very Peri stands alone in color blocks or beautifully matches with greens, yellows, pinks, and whites.”
Katie says May is a prime month to plant “a Very Peri garden,” noting slight timing differences to consider based on location. “Depending on where you are, planting earlier in the month is better to get plants established,” she says. However, if you’re planting crops that might be sensitive to frost, check your last frost date and be sure to plant after that chance has passed. “Cool mornings and sunny afternoons help plants settle before the long, hot summer days,” she continues. “In warmer climates, planting later in the month is still possible—keep an eye on new plants and provide supplemental water until they get rooted and established.”
Below, find professional advice for weaving this trending tone into your plant palette with three garden themes and plenty of specifics to set you up for utmost success in creating your own Very Peri-dise!
PERI POLLINATOR PARADISE
Mary Phillips of Garden for Wildlife: Debuting to expanded regions across the U.S., the Garden for Wildlife Collection of keystone native plants makes it easier to plant with a purpose. Scientifically selected to support the highest numbers of butterflies, bees, and birds, these blooming perennials add variety, color, and texture to your garden. Best of all? They’re delivered right to your door! Very Peri picks include aster and geraniums in the Spring Bee Buffet Collection or the lobelia (above) in the Pollinator Power Collection. Another bee favorite is Bellini® Grape Crape Myrtle from Bloomables®. This super-compact shrub will be covered in beautiful purple blooms all summer long, and with its tight, mounded habit, it can fit in any size garden or container.
A BERRY PERI EDIBLE GARDEN
Kristen Pullen of Star® Roses and Plants: A terrific—and tasty—way to bring the “it” color into your landscape is with blueberries. Their blue-purple fruits and attractive foliage extend your garden’s visual interest across seasons. BerryBux® (above) from Bushel and Berry® is a revolutionary ornamental blueberry plant because its foliage and compact habit are similar to a boxwood. It’s ideal for hedges and mass plantings in Zones 5–8. The berries on BerryBux® are small but pack a punch with a wild, aromatic flavor.
Also from Bushel and Berry® is Silver Dollar® blueberry (above) with delicious pineapple flavor and silvery foliage that almost looks like eucalyptus. Hardy in Zones 5–10, this 2- to 3-foot mounded shrub is the perfect summer addition to the Very Peri garden.
And the purple palette doesn’t stop with berries. Most people associate rosemary with its aromatic and culinary properties, but the periwinkle flowers of common rosemary plants are a bonus to this flavorful and easy-to-grow herb.
BOLD BLOOMS IN PERI & PURPLE
Peggy Anne Montgomery of Flowerbulbs.com: There’s no easier way to bring Very Peri into your garden than by adding vibrant flowers. Agapanthus (above) is a fast-growing, drought-tolerant, summer-flowering bulb packed with color. Flower spikes explode in summer with bright purple-blue blossoms. Flowerbulbs.com says there are many different varieties with flowers that range from blue to purple to white and every shade of periwinkle in between.
L.A. Dreamin’ (above) is a periwinkle-hued hydrangea with star power that lasts all season long, from early summer through fall. And although the flower is huge, thankfully, this compact plant will fit into any garden. Dark green textured foliage casts a marvelous contrast for the large multicolored blooms. It is beautiful and versatile, outstanding in the garden and planted in a decorative container.
