Each year Pantone chooses a colour for the new year. Marsala has been chosen as the colour for 2015. It’s not that popular with some people but I love it. It is rich, warm and inviting. So what does this mean for our gardens? What kinds of plants have this colour? I looked through my garden photos yesterday and here are a few I came across. You will be surprised at how many choices are out there. You should be able to find colours to fill your garden for each season.
Spring was an easy one with Irises blooming in early May. When I moved here 10 years ago this Iris was already here. My first impression was that it wasn’t my favourite but I kept it. As you can see it’s that dusky brownish red of a good glass of marsala wine. You should also be able to find Pansies in the spring in shades of dark burgundy.
I also have several Heucheras that lend themselves to this deep wine colour. They are good both in the ground and in containers. I seem to collect these plants having a few in my collection, OK, about 20 too many. Try Heuchera ‘Plum Pudding’ to add the marsala colour to your garden. This is probably one of the easiest plants to propagate. What I love about this plant is that its evergreen here so it adds winter interest. I can’t seem to get enough of them. This year I will be introducing some Heucherellas to the garden. I love foliage, can you tell?
Every garden should have a Cotinus or smoke bush. Its lovely dark wine coloured foliage is striking and shines when paired with bright greens in the garden. Next to my Cotinus is a Hydrangea and the combination of the two plants is stunning.
Daylilies can be found in this colour as well. The daylily above is Hemerocallis ‘Pardon Me’. This daylily grows alongside Hostas in the shade garden.
This Pelargonium ‘Vancouver Centennial’ with its dark wine coloured veining in the leaves would look amazing planted next to the Daylily ‘Pardon Me.’
If you love succulents, you could grow Aeonium as well. Its long succulent leaves are a deep shade of marsala with hints of green in the center.
On my visit to VanDusen Botanical garden last summer, I walked through the Black Garden. Above you can see Sedum angelina and the grass to the left really helping the dark colours of Barberry pop. So will you be planting this colour in your garden or do you already have plants that are this colour? One thing is for sure, with this colour it really needs to be up front and center. If you plant this colour by itself it will fade back into the darkness. Place it with lighter coloured plants like chartreuse greens for the best effect in the garden.
