A garden needs dramatic accent plants! Use them sparingly so that they will be effective. In contrast with its surroundings, a plant becomes an accent piece. Color, texture, shape, and size all enter the picture.
The tall spires of a verbascum plant punctuate a long flower border. Coleus plants make a Persian carpet of rich design. With these thoughts in mind, I suggest you take a walk through your garden to see where accent plants would be interesting.
The Boldness Of Cannas
Where striking color is wanted, cannas are the answer. The foliage of Cannas blooms is spectacular and bright. The dark bronze or green leaves are thick and deliver a tropical feeling.
The large, showy flowers come in vibrant yellow and scarlet colors—plant canna roots in the spring when the weather begins to warm. Cannas are very useful when planted as one clump to an 18″ inch tub.
Though an old-fashioned plant, the hollyhock is beautiful enough to be in today’s gardens. A tall biennial grows four to nine feet high. White, red, and yellow are the most common colors, but they can also melt pastels. A row of hollyhocks back of a flower border makes a bold accent. Or, use a single clump in front of a stump or other unsightly view.
The Beauty Of Japanese Irises
Japanese irises give splendor to a garden. They grow in clumps and produce large flowers of much beauty in blue, red, purple, and white colors. Provide plenty of moisture in spring but more miniature in summer—plant in medium acid soil.
After the blooming season, the large leaves are decorative all summer. They make a bold contrast to low-growing flowering plants in a border.
There are many choice plantain- lilies. My favorite for accent is Hosta sorcordata grandiflora. It has large spikes of fragrant white blossoms and big, bright green leaves. Plant in moist, humusy soil in semi-shade or sunshine. Blooming time in August.
I have used the stately regal lily for many years as an accent plant. Its white, trumpet-shaped flowers perfume the garden in early June. Its height is three to four feet.
Contrast Gray With Green
Southernwood or “old man” (Artemisia abrotanum) is good to use where a plant with gray foliage would make a pleasing contrast to the green leaves of other plants. Southernwood is an herb with scented foliage.
Sedum spectabile and its hybrid forms are robust perennials, 12″ to 24″ inches tall. They have large gray-green leaves, and the starry heads of September flowers come in many shades of pink, red, and white.
Individual plants have a compact form. Combined with succulent, bluish foliage, the sedums are good for accent work. Where a plant of absolute height (up to five feet) is wanted, the verbascum is an unusual and good choice.
It is not particular about soil and prefers a hot, dry spot. From a leafy clump of double-serrated leaves, long stems arise on which are borne large, vividly colored blooms.
Verbascum will self-sow after flowering and yield many new plants. It is a biennial. A leafy rosette grows the first year; the spires of bloom come in the second season.
Foliage With A Rich Texture
For a spot of brilliant foliage, try a grouping of coleus plants. Kinds like the Monarch strain shown on the opposite page give luxuriant leaf growth combined with exciting color combinations and patterns. Height to two feet; sun or shade.
Sometimes, a low-growing shrub gives a lovely accent to an extensive planting of perennial and annual flowers. Choose this kind of shrub with care; keep in mind that you will want it to stay in a neat outline. Low-growing azaleas, dwarf deutzias, and dwarf kinds of Japanese quince make excellent accent shrubs.