Ever since its release in 1988 , the children ’s bookPlanting a Rainbowby Lois Ehlert has been one of the favourite agency for green - thumbed parent to transfuse a love of gardening and nature in their child .
doubtlessly legion rainbow garden have been started ( and some forgotten ) by small fry eager to get their hands marked-up and their seeds in the ground
A quick hunting for “ how to plant a rainbow garden ” reveals activity sheets , lesson plans and other projects you may do with kids . But how about planting a rainbow garden for grownup to relish ? Here ’s a templet on how to do it and what plants will aid you achieve the desired effect .
What is a rainbow garden?
Are n’t most gardens supposed to be colorful anyway ?
Yes , but the master attracter of this aim is not just the fact that it brings colorful blossom beds into focus . A rainbow garden is a garden where the flora have been arranged to resemble the colors of the rainbow , both in order and ( sometimes ) in configuration . So think of arch - shaped garden bed that follow the ROY G BIV mnemonic ( red , orange , chickenhearted , green , dreary , indigo , reddish blue ) .
For some nurseryman , that ’s the main attraction ; for others , it may sound like a headache waiting to happen . But with a little bit of planning , a rainbow garden is n’t intemperate to achieve , even during a single originate time of year .
And the most important part of produce a new garden design is lease your creativeness roam freely – or at least as freely as your planting site allow . You do n’t necessarily have to follow an patronising shape if planting in mathematical group would attend good in your quad . Just as you do n’t have to follow the colors of the rainbow in order . And you ’re definitely allowed to play a few eye tricks with the dismal - indigo - violet combo . Nature for sure does !
How do I plan a rainbow garden?
The cay to develop a rainbow pattern in your garden is proper preparation . That ’s why a rainbow garden , like any intention from scratch , is best started on composition rather thanin situ .
First , make up one’s mind what form of rainbow garden you ’d like to commit to : a natural spring electric light garden , an yearly garden or a perennial garden . I ’ll blow up on the pro and cons of each of these below , so you could skip this step ( for now ! ) and add up back subsequently . However , do n’t skip on the planning - on - paper process before you pop out prod into the ground .
On a piece of paper , outline out how you ’d like your rainbow garden to look , keeping in mind a few questions .
How much sunlight will your rainbow piece get ?
How often are you prepared to irrigate it to keep the “ ` Wow ! factor ” novel ?
Will passers - by be capable to admire it , or is it for your own private screening ?
Do you desire to keep it a subtle affaire , or are you give way all out with this design ?
How much maintenance are you uncoerced to intrust to ?
Do you want to plant the peak in order of colour , or desegregate and match them a bit to keep it interesting ?
Here are three possible layout for the rainbow garden to get the ideas rolling .
Layout 1 : The arched rainbow garden is plan as a side feature in the smear that gets the most amount of sunshine .
Layout 2 : You’re fully steep in the rainbow garden as you take the air along the way and every row is within stretch .
Layout 3 : The rainbow garden behave as a instinctive enclosing and privacy screen for the seating area domain .
Here are four more tips to keep in judgement throughout the preparation stage :
1. Choose plants that have roughly the same blooming time.
This depend a lot on the climate you ’re gardening in , and what case of plants you ’d care to spring up in your rainbow garden . But you surely do n’t desire some blooms gone ( or even worse , crispy brown ) while others still have n’t opened yet .
For maximal effect , you should select plants that are in bloom of youth at the same prison term . This should be a fairly easy choice if you baffle to the same sort of plants – for good example , you ’re more probable to achieve a moving ridge of blooms effect if you plant summertime perennials only , or outflow medulla only . Planning gets a routine more complicated if you determine to mix and match , especially bulbs and perennials .
2. Consider the height of plants at maturity.
This is one of the main reasons why you may have to aline the color order when you ’re embed in drift . Think of it as stadium - style planting , with the tall plant life in the back and the shortest plants in the front seat . In other words , you would n’t want your delphiniums to overshadow your calendula , nor your lupines blocking your geranium from sight .
3. Consider the foliage.
Some plants have beautiful heyday that would work well in a rainbow garden , if only their foliage were n’t too dim . So plant such as nasturtiums , for instance , have a in high spirits foliage - to - bloom proportion that would visually be in the way if you ’re going for the rainbow result .
Speaking of foliage , you’re able to use works with colored foliage as a substitute for colourful blooms . plant such as canna , genus Heuchera , coleus and cordyline have stunning leaf that could compete in any plant stunner contest .
Shiso purple cress plant is not only a tasty herb , but its foliage persist purple all summertime long
4. You can start small and test your theory by planting a rainbow container.
This is a petty bit of a cheat , but it ’s a good way to see what plants go well together , not to advert test your commitment to turning your garden into a rainbow .
you’re able to either imbed a rainbow container garden in the same pot – with all the blooms sharing the same quad . Or you could dissever the containers by vividness , following the one color per pot rule until you ’ve plant seven coloured container that you could rearrange depending on which one you desire to take center stage .
Should my rainbow garden be annual or perennial?
safe enquiry . Here are some professional and hustle of each to serve you decide :
1. Creating a spring bulb rainbow garden.
Pros : I chose to start with the spring medulla selection because it has the best of both worlds : you will plant bulbs every fall ( the annual facet ) , but you may also reprocess the light bulb for several year in a row ( the perennial aspect ) .
Another vantage of outflow bulbs is that they are widely uncommitted in a mixed bag of colors , and they ’re honest flub ( you ’ll seldom get a dud ) . And perhaps more importantly to achieving a rainbow shape , you’re able to time their bloom prison term with more accuracy equate to perennials .
A springtime light bulb garden is easy to plan and planting goes fast if you ’re using a bulb planter .
confidence trick : You will have to replant your rainbow every season if you choose to dig out the bulbs when they ’re done blooming . Of naturally , you could leave your bulbs in the primer coat to eliminate some of the hassle , but this may lead to reduced blooms the following season for some spring bulb . ( Tulips , in picky , tend to turn a loss their energy and produce small-scale and smaller flowers with every twelvemonth they ’re left in the earth . )
Which leads me to another disadvantage . Because electric light have single - stalking blooms , you ’ll have to constitute them nearer together in parliamentary law to achieve a stocky rainbow effect . This may get pretty pricey , especially if you ’re buying less common variety to achieve the right color combination .
Another thing to keep in mind is that when the blooms have faded – whether you ’re plan on lift the bulb or leaving them in the priming – you ’ll be forget with a comparatively bare eyepatch of garden by previous spring or early summertime . This can be an advantage , especially if you have seedlings growing and quick to go into the ground in the same berth . But for the gardeners who prefer the once - and - done mode of horticulture , throw to plan and plant the same bed twice in a time of year may be more hassle than a rainbow garden ’s worth .
If you ’ve decided that the pros outweigh the cons , here are some ideas for a spring bulb rainbow garden . Since a lot of the bulbs come in various colour , you ’ll see them repeated throughout the list a couplet of time , with a few proposition of cultivars that match the color .
ruby :
Orange River :
chickenhearted :
Green :
aristocratical :
indigo plant :
reddish blue :
2. Creating an annual rainbow garden.
Pros : make a rainbow garden with annual plant life is perhaps the wanton style to accomplish this intent , peculiarly if you just buy your annuals as quid ( little plant ready to be put straight into the undercoat ) or as fledged bushy flora that you ’ll just have to transfer into your bed .
Of course , if you ’re exceedingly organized , you may also plant your annuals from seed to keep your gardening budget on the lower side . plant life such as marigold , nigella and California poppies can easily be grown from seeded player – either by jump them indoors or planting them straight into the soil in the garden .
Planting an annual garden is also a good way to prove whether you like this design without committing too much to perennial .
Cons : Keep in mind that planting and replanting an annual garden every yr can get pretty pricey . After all , you ’re paying for professional person to grow the plants in commercial greenhouses and pay for nurseries to keep the stock look invigorated , not to mention the whole logistics chain between the two . As I mention above , it get flashy if you take to seed your own annual , especially if you keep open your germ to reprocess next time of year or if you could incur a seed swapping chemical group to join in your area .
Here are some colorful plants for your annual rainbow garden design:
3. Creating a perennial rainbow garden.
Pros : It will be in place for years , so you do n’t have to redouble your work or your investiture in the years to come . Past the planning stage , it ’s the most low-priced selection .
convict : It takes a bit of planning and it takes longer to get start . With a perennial garden , self - seed plantsmay mess with your intention . In this suit , you’re able to either deadhead the blossom before they go to source or pluck out the little seedling next class if you were n’t speedy enough to foreclose self - seeding . Or simply embrace the blurred lines and the blending of colors and hues that may result over fourth dimension .
Keep in mind that some plant life that rise as perennial in some climates , may be treat as annual by people who garden in colder climates . Always control the seed package or flora label for USDA geographical zone recommendations or check your local university farming annexe for a list of perennial that will do well in your mood .
Here are some perennial ideas for your rainbow garden:
Can I combine annuals and perennials in my rainbow garden?
Yes , of course you may . There is nothing stopping you from planting a calendula ( orange one-year ) in between monarda ( red perennial ) and genus Rudbeckia ( yellow perennial ) . The trick is to recall that your calendula will die at the end of the season and you need to gather up the seeds and reseed them the come after spring if you want to achieve the same look next year .
This guide is only mean to pique your curiosity about rainbow gardens ; but if you let your creativeness roam , there are countless way to make the rainbow garden work for your space and your budget .
