Garden Design Ideas

City Garden

Adam Frost designed this city garden for the RHS Chelsea Flower Show in London in 2007. Soft red bricks are the perfect foil for the color-themed planting, which is a sumptuous mix of crimson, pink, and mauve.

Plants Used

Salix elaeagnos subsp. angustifolia
Persicaria bistorta ‘Superba'
Rosa ‘Souvenir du Docteur Jamain'
Heuchera ‘Chocolate Ruffles'
Astrantia major ‘Roma'

Design in Focus

At the center of this border, which measures roughly 4 x 6 feet, is a highly fragrant, dark crimson cup-shaped rose, its glossy green leaves forming an open framework for the slim stems of the Persicaria and Astrantia to grow through. These pale pink perennials complement the rich tones of the rose and help reflect light into the design, and are fringed at ground level by a wine-colored Heuchera. The Salix, with its pale green filigree leaves, provides the perfect neutral backdrop to the warm colors.