Maybe some of us will be courageous enough to show when plans go wrong, or we plant first and then the color clash becomes apparent years later.

Back in 2005 I planted the Japanese anemone, but the Clara Curtis mum had been in place for many, many years. It was only this year when the anemone bloomed at the same time as the mum that the clash hurt my eyes - it is that bad.

First the sweet anemone:



Then the Clara Curtis hardy mum:



Now the clash!


So, instead of moving the anemone, I'll take a tip from Pamela Harper, author of Color Echoes, and just remove the flowers of the anemone when it comes into bloom early next September.

Show us some of your disasters.

This is the clash that bugs me the most in my garden, iris Drama Queen with a blue anchusa. Moved iris.

Funny, I don't usually take pictures of the bad. I'll go thought my pictures see what I might have. I did do a combo at my front door one year, mind you this is 5 huge pots, with fuchsia and orange pels, and red petunias. I saw this in a planting at the mall, was beautiful there. My rendition was frightening, that was one lone summer. I have standards here, friends said oh that's nice!!!NOT! I don't try to mimic things I see or try to redo a combo I liked one year, they never are the same in my mind.

Ok found a few. Warning this will hurt your eyes!

This was just bad!!!


In My defense this was just stuff left over in the greenhouse that needed planting.

Sue - that iris is SO gorgeous. What partners did you give that wonderful iris?

Okay, Julia, you did make my eyes hurt but we've all probably made some wrong color choices and you did need homes for those plants. In your defense, the hanging basket of red and purple petunias with white (something) is lush and lovely.

I'm still convinced that the pink family is trickier to work with than any other color. Either they sway towards lavender, peachy tones or they end up bland and boring. Here the pink petunia doesn't match and the "what was I thinking" frame of mind must have taken over for me to put a lavender petunia in the mix.

And sometimes blooms are different colors depending on their age. I've made some containers where the colors were fabulous when I planted them, but as the blooms got older there was clashing happening. Sure, I could just sheer them off. But I rarely have enough time to even keep containers watered let alone manicured.

Yes, Sue do you have an up date on that area?

pirl said:Sue - that iris is SO gorgeous. What partners did you give that wonderful iris?

No partners yet, just in a new bed I am creating so there are still so many decisions to make. I think I will try what you and Jo Ann do, make photo collages to plan out the combos. I am a visual person and when things aren't in bloom I quickly forget how they look.

Jennifer - age isn't always a friend to people either!

pirl said:Jennifer - age isn't always a friend to people either!

Amen to that!

Sue - just tried a few plants with your Drama Queen and the one heuchera that looks best is Midnight Rose (to my eyes, anyhow) but there is something nice about Marvelous Marble that seems to include the effect the iris has near the beard area.



I tried lupine but the ones I tried were purple, not the depth of wine in your iris. Too many sites are calling Midnight Rose purple but it isn't purple at all. Maybe they're all color blind.

You can always shop color online for plants to match the gold/buff color at Mischel's - shop by color:
http://www.mischelsgreenhouses...

I don't know if your area is prime territory for heuchera or not but that's the best I could find in my photos and now have to get to one more store for something I forgot, of course, for Thanksgiving dinner. It will smell suspiciously like Prime Rib, not turkey, but I do have one turkey leg just for the aroma (and turkey soup).

Beautiful combos pirl, thanks for doing that! A heuchera is what I was thinking too and the bronze ones seem pretty sun tolerant here.

I was thinking different. I have that heuchera and if it goes in to much sun the spots turn a beige/tan color but might be ok in the spring. The spots are pink then in early spring. I was thinking of back dropping in another color to set that beauty off.
maybe one of those variegated Phlox




Maybe this little tree. I can not for the life of me remember the name but Sue you might know. Has nice winter structure as well. Found it Corokia

Love the phlox idea.

As I drove I thought about the iris and the green of the stem could easily work for another color echo.

I've read that the lighter heucheras (like the amber and peach family) want shade while the darker ones can take the sun. Since I've lost every light one that I had in sun I can't test it out but the dark ones do well for me in full sun. Purple Petticoats and Palace Purple retain their color. I do believe those spots could fade to tan as Julia mentioned - great thought, Julia. Mine hasn't had the problem but it's in a spot that doesn't get the hot afternoon sun.

Hmmm, I don't recognize it but then I am not that well acquainted with trees and shrubs since I came from an itty bitty city size gardening lot.
I don't see phlox around here, may be too hot.

I am with Pirl on the iris huchera combos.I have a lot of early iris so not much in flower at the time.
Heucheras are the answer.The leaves dont change color much all winter.
Here is Aurora sea with Obsidian mauvies are sorta close



I also like Bow Tie with hosta



Dark Forces with columbine Dark Purple



Bluebeards Ghost beards go with Devoted

Oh Jo Ann, those are the good color echoes and belong in the other thread!

Here's a bad one, blurry shot taken an hour ago, don't know what I was thinking. The pink gaura will be moved soon.

And this bugs me, I was hoping that the Bidens (Bidens aurea 'Orange Drop') would better match with the centers of this unknown (lost tag) Arctotis but it's all wrong plus the silver leaves are weird with the bidens too. So more rearranging.

Sue, the tree is Corokia. WOW!!!!! What are you thinking for a replacement? I was thinking that was a tall bearded Iris. Jo Ann those combos are beautiful!!!!! Please do post on the other tread as everyone should see your beautiful combos.