
Flower Garden Colour Combinations
It’s the time of year when we are starting to plant out indoor sown annuals, direct sow some more and happily watching perennial plants popping up. Back in the autumn and winter we put our minds to what we wanted to grow this year, which flower garden colour combinations did we want to see, we browsed through plant and seed catalogues that are full of colourful garden ideas.
We chose our riotous flower colour combinations. We dreamed of borders, beds and pots awash with glorious flowers, fragrance and foliage.
Plants and seed orders were made, our gardening creative juices were in full flow, visions were put in place and now we hope to see all our plans come to fruition. How to Grow Plant Seeds. 5 Easy Steps
I imagine that we have all seen and admired local parks, public gardens and friends gardens boasting colourful planting schemes and we long to emulate them in our own gardens, here is how we can do that very easily by choosing, not only the right colours but also the shape, forms, height and foliage of plants that once combined, look sensational together.
In summer we make the very most of our outdoor spaces, spending more time outdoors enjoying the weather, indulging in family time, entertaining friends and of course, gardening.
Often maintenance jobs are carried out as well to keep everything ship-shape and in good repair. What Jobs to do in the Garden in April
Our gardens become somewhere that we wish to spend as much time as possible. With a little preparation and thought they can be a little haven away from the hustle and bustle of daily life. what-to-do-on-a-staycation
Flower Garden Colour Combinations
I have put together a few of the most popular colour schemes with a selection of plants to use for each theme. I have suggested various trees, shrubs or climbers that will be permanent plants in the garden, choosing ones that compliment the seasonal colours.
Bright And Bold
Vivid yellow and rich purples always look fantastic together:
- Euphorbia palustris
- Alchemelia Mollis
- Deep Aubergine Lupin Masterpiece
- Globe Alliums
- Purple Salvia
- Viburnum Bonariensis for some height and movement
- Heuchera Forever Purple and Electric Plum
These plants all create a lush, rich colour that is exuberant and decadently eye-catching.

Foliage shrubs or trees that will add further drama to this scheme are:
- Cotinus royal purple
- Sambucus Nigra
Climbing plants that will compliment these colours are clematis Dark Eyes and Rasputin, there are so many purple flowering clematis. Choose ones that you like best and select a few that flower at different times for a longer, on going show.How to Grow a Clematis
Blues And Yellows
Dark shades of blue look beautiful with both lemon yellow as well as brighter tones of yellow.
Alchemelia Mollis is a citrus, lime yellow, it is a wonderful foil for light blues and lilac/blue tones such as hardy geranium Roxanne.
- Nepeta
- Coreopsis moonbeam or creme brûlée both look lovely with shades of blue.
- Salvia nemorosa
- Lavender
- Height can be added with Golden rod and gorgeous tall yellow lupins, gladiolus, Iris and Agapanthus.
Climbers and permanent plants could be Honeysuckle, Clematis, Jasmine.
Include some clipped dark evergreen shrubs for a deep contrast.
Euonymus Fortunei “Emerald n Gold” with its citrus, gold – yellow leaves looks fantastic as a backdrop for blue flowers.

Cool Customers
Lilacs, pale mauve, soft pinks, white and cream all look stunning together. A cool look can be created with cottage garden style plants or more modern, contemporary planting schemes. The choice of colourful garden plants is endless.

Climbers such as Wisteria, Honeysuckle or Clematis can be the mainstay plants with perennials and annuals adding to the mix throughout spring and summer.

Roses – New Dawn and Iceberg are both beautiful climbing roses, pale pink or white blooms with gorgeous scent.
A lovely small shrub would be Deutzia, this delicate small plant is in flower now with masses of tiny pink/white flowers.
White flowered fuchsia Magallancia Alba or soft pink Fuchsia White Knights Blush are but a couple of suggestions, there are many to choose from.
White Agapanthus will add some height and glamour.
In The Pink
Hot Pink, Fuchsia Pink, Candy Pink
Whichever shade of pink appeals to you, there is certainly a huge choice of colourful garden plants that will keep your borders, pots, baskets… in the pink.
Some of my favourites are:
- Astrantia Roma and Buckland these are easy to grow perennials, the pollinators love them
- Osteospermum
- Verbena
- Achillea Cerise Queen
Shrubs suggestions as staple plants in the pink border are Fuchsia, Weigelia, Daphne. For a bold contrast use


Some ideas if you would like to include In the Pink roses are: How do you Grow Roses?: Secrets to Success
- Lady of the Lake
- Constance Spry
- Queen of Denmark
- Anne Boleyn
- England’s Rose.
Shades Of Autumn
Colourful plant combinations that will take us through into autumn
I have also listed some of these in the sunset colours as they are similar.
- Rudbeckia
- Helenium
- Echinacea
- Planted with grasses such as Stipa Gigantea, Stipa arundinacea
- Miscanthus Ferner osten turns bright orange in autumn
- these lovely late flowering plants will look beautiful as the grasses add movement and catch the light
Foliage colours that can’t be dismissed are of course the beautiful Autumn shades of the Acers.
Young, new leaves are coming through right now giving us stunning gold, wine reds, ruby, peach, apricot and vivid greens.
Acers provide a landscape with an abundance of autumn colours that really should be included in any garden to give year round interest.
Perfectly happy in containers too as my photo shows. This collection of Acers provide colour around a formal pond area. Their gold, bronze and copper colours are picked up by the similar colours of the pots and ornaments.

Radiant Sunset
Vibrant orange, yellows and reds look hot and exotic .
Colours here are reminiscent of autumn and as this season comes around some of these plants will continue on, taking on a softer look in the borders:
- Alstroemerias Indian Summer, which I absolutely love, they come up in my garden every year without fail and flower long into the autumn until the first frosts
- Dahlias Taratahi Ruby, Bishop of Llandaff, Doris Day are all stunning red or orange hues
- Crocosmia Lucifer with its elegant, arching stems covered in vivid red flowers
- Rudbeckia Helenium
- Heuchera Paprika
- Geum Totally Tangerine
- Zantedeschia
A climber to include in this scheme to add some height would be Campsis Indian Summer or Radicans.
Shrubs in these tones include Nandine, Spirea Magic Carpet or Physocarpus with it’s gorgeous bronze leaves and tiny yellow flowers.Hardy Evergreen Flowering Shrubs


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Flower Garden Colour Combinations The Choice Is Yours
As I have said in previous articles there are so many colours, combinations and planting schemes that you can try. You have to first think what colours you like and which flowers will best add those colours to your garden.
Experimenting is key I think. If something doesn’t work out as planned it is not going to really matter, you just try with something new another time.
When it comes to colour, as far as I am concerned the more the better. Gardens I believe should be a riot of colour, fragrance and texture.
Nature very often plays her part, she takes seeds from plants and puts them down where she knows they will achieve full potential. Many times I find self-seeded plants in an area that look better than where I chose to plant them originally.
There is no right or wrong way, it is simply what you want to see growing in your outdoor space.
If this article has proved useful and interesting for you please do share with friends, family and social media.
I would love to hear from you about your garden and colour schemes, leave a comment below.
Happy Gardening.
OMG! What beauties and awesome combinations I see here in this post. I’m a flower lover and I really like to decorate my house at least 2times in a year in order to give it fresh looks and new vibes. Honestly, I was awestruck with appreciation seeing most of this flower combinations. The Cool Lilac Tones for the cool customers seems really awesome and I would love to get that done here plus the radiant sunset is also eye budging. Really contemplating here. But thanks for this post and suggestions
Hello,
You have made me smile, I am now imagining your house full of colourful flowers.
Thank you for your kind comments, I am truly grateful for them.
I hope you are really inspired with my planting colour scheme ideas.
Best Wishes
Louise
Wow, beautiful indeed. I have never read an article on flowers before. But this one got me hooked up. Actually, I was never a fan of flowers but since I came to Ukraine in Europe. I have come to love flowers because these people cherish flowers so much. And the way they care for them and handle them, plus the meanings they read into them open mind up to love and view flowers in another way which is lovely. Your article is really great, plus it’s that time in Ukraine when everyone starts to plant flowers again. I love the idea about the combination of flowers you spoke about.
Hello Augusta, thank you for your lovely comments,
I imagine the Ukraine is beautiful with all the spring flowers.
I enjoy to hear about all the folklore and stories that surround nature and plants.
Best Wishes
Louise
This year I’m helping my SIL plant flowers around her house. We were just talking about which color combinations would go best where. We really like pink and purple but you have given us so much more choices that we hadn’t thought about before. Thanks for putting this information together for us. Its really helped me see how we can really get out of the box with this little spring project of ours.
Hello Marlinda, I am thrilled to know you are doing some planting together, glad that you like my ideas. There are so many beautiful flowers and plants for you to choose. I really hope that you enjoy your garden project.
Here are a few more ideas All Summer Blooming Flowers
Best Wishes
Louise
Awesome post, Louise. I found your post very educational. In our busy lives we tend to give too little emphasis on gardening. I was hooked to your post. It reminded me of my grand parents and their beautiful small garden at the back side of our home.
In your post, particularly the color combination was most intriguing to me. It was my virtual tour to a beautiful garden, as I proceeded reading your post. Surely, I’ll share it with my family. They are gonna like it for sure.
And, hopefully I’ll be able to adopt some of the learnings to have a beautiful garden in my home. Thanks for sharing this interesting article. I appreciate your time for this detailed analysis.
Hello,
I am happy to be able to give a virtual tour of a garden.
I hope you do gain some ideas to plant some flowers yourself.
Thanks
Louise
Im in the process of moving house at the moment, Their are some great ideas in this blog for when I get into the new garden.. I will be looking to do an easy maintenance garden with lots of colour
Hi,
You will have lots of opportunities to create a new garden at your next home. Lots of colour and easy maintenance are straightforward to achieve.
Easy Low Maintenance Garden Ideas
There are some fantastic colour combinations to incorporate into my garden here
I love the blue and yellow , alchemelia and the blue geraniums look stunning.
Also you have made me think of foliage colours too, something else for me to try as I hadn’t considered foliage in my colour schemes.
Thank again
Alison
Hi,
I think we often forget about using foliage in our colour planting schemes, I’m glad to have given you something new to think about for your garden.
Best Wishes
Louise
What a wealth of easy to understand advice!
Well done Louise, this is brilliant! x
Hello Gill,
Thank you for your comments, I hope there is sometime here to inspire you to try different plants and colours.
Best Wishes and happy gardening
Louise