Four Seasons of Color...Really? Part II

This is the second installment in a five-week series of short articles designed to help you bring year-round color to your yard. Planning a landscape can be a daunting task--we hope that this series can help offer some suggestions for planning your yard. Check our blog weekly for the latest installment--and enjoy!  

Some great color in early summer!

Summer is a great time to be outdoors enjoying your yard. If you'd like to make the most of your outdoor experience, be sure to plant a few shrubs and perennials that will give you color to admire while you're basking in the sun, enjoying dinner outside or simply mowing the lawn. Here are just a few plants I have in my small yard to add summer color:

Summer

• Admiration Barberry (deep red foliage with gold edging to leaves)
• Astilbe (blooms late spring/early summer with plumes of red, pink and white flowers)
• Dianthus (a variety of carnations in various shades of pink, red and white around the yard)
• Dwarf Asiatic Lilies (bloom late spring and early summer--different varieties can spread out the blooming season)
• Heuchera (truly a four-season perennial; long summer days bring out the richness in shades of all different color tones in the foliage) 
• Hostas (several varieties--leaves offer interest from late spring through early autumn but also bloom in summer)
• Munstead Lavender (blooms in early- to mid-summer, but with light shearing after blooming, will re-bloom late summer)
• Nikko Blue Hydrangea (the traditional blue mophead hydrangea; blooms mid- to late-summer)
• Orange Rocket Barberry (summer warmth brings out rich orange color in leaves)
• Pink Lemonade Blueberry (blooms in late spring give way to pink berries in summer)
• Roses (color choices are endless!)
• Variegated Willow (pink new growth in late spring continues through summer and matures to dappled green and white leaves)

Coming up next week, we'll take a look at a couple of plants that offer great autumn color--and with all the rain we can get around here in autumn, a little bit of bright color may be just what you need for that time of year!