Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Blue in the garden

I’ve never particularly cared for the color blue, actually avoided it for many years. But slowly blue foliage has started to win me over. I suppose it all started with the big blue Yucca Rostrata. Other smaller Y. rostrata have been added. Of course the blue Agaves are a favorite. Along with the Blue Senecio. Since my garden is rather foliage based the blue is a nice visual break from all the shades of green. In much the same way that green foliage often performs as a visual break in flower-heavy gardens. But of course there are a few fabulous blue flowers that must be included… And even blue berries (not in my garden, unfortunately) Combined with blue poppy foliage. When combined with a little dark dusky purple blue can take on a deep mysterious quality. One of my favorite blues in other peoples gardens are grasses. For some reason I always fail (they die) when I try to include these blue grasses in my garden, so I’ve learned to appreciate them elsewhere. They even look good in an ignored commercial street side planting! I think these folks wanted more blue in their garden than foliage or flower could supply. Of course there is one type of blue you should never, ever, include in your garden. The dreaded blue tarp.

10 comments:

  1. Ah yes, another case of Tarpitis! I can't keep the blue Fescue alive either. Although I'm also not a huge fan of blue, I do like blue foliaged plants. You've got some great photos.

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  2. AnonymousJuly 12, 2011

    But, you know, one thing that I just don't like at all is the idea of a blue rose. For some reason, that just doesn't work for me.

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  3. Your case of 'the blues' is anything but mournful. Something ate my senecio (same culprit that did in my opuntia?). I keep trying to get spiky, but some bug keeps foiling my plans.

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  4. Nice...blue Hostas are a fave...and I also have killed the Blue Oat Grass...not sure what the deal is there :-( Like most colors, blue is one that I can either love or hate, depending on the hue. I'm partial to deeper, purply blues...can't stand the color of Forget-Me-Nots (Myosotis)...then again, it may be the yellow eye that throws me off on that one.

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  5. You get to grow a lot of pretty blue colors in your garden! I've avoided most glaucous foliage and blue flowers just to keep things in the same color scheme, but you just can't help but grow agapanthus if only for the lush and glossy leaves. There are a few hybrids with really deep and dark blooms that I'm keeping an eye out for though... some are even closer to purple! Lovely pics. :)

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  6. Oh my, blue is my favorite foliage color, and being an agave and succulent lover, I get to choose among lots of beautiful blue plants. Like you, though, I can't keep blue grasses alive. (Ruby grass, not fescue, which doesn't grow well in central Texas.)

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  7. I have a renewed love affair with plants with blue foliage, I tink they're gorgeous as you've said makes a good contrast with green ones. Love the rostrata, must get myself a bigger one, a bit of a bugger to re-root trunked ones though.

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  8. Grace, I laughed when I saw the tarp and of course thought of you!

    Patricia, I couldn't agree more! Not being a rose fan to begin with a blue one is just extra wrong.

    ricki, this is a sad state of spiky affairs! Something has been nibbling on mine too, I'm blaming slugs because basically I blame them for everything that goes wrong in my garden.

    scott, yes! I agree about the Forget-Me-Nots, but then again they are awfully "sweet" and I have a problem with sweet.

    RFG, and to think that those crazy Californians see Agapanthus as a nuisance!

    Pam, what is it about the grasses? Interesting that so many are saying the same thing...yet there are many gardens that they are beautiful in.

    Mark and Gaz, I think your blog is where I first heard of buying Rostratas unrooted. I would be scared to make the investment in something like that!

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  9. I so appreciate what blue foliage does for the rest of my green, yellow-green and purple-green (like Loropetalum) foliage. The Yucca Rostrata is such a great focal point. I have had great luck with Blue Oat grass and it really looks great against my orangey Roman brick planters. Blue tarps should be outlawed: what ever happened to the green ones we used to see? They're hardly nice to look at but not quite so visually jarring.

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  10. Blue tarp: LOL! Good punch line!

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