Five Plant Combo: Semi-Shade

When you train as a gardener designer you are encouraged to develop a palette of plant groups or combinations that tick the following boxes:

1. Same soil type

2. Same aspect

3. Good colour combination

4. Variation of flower shapes

5. Complimentary heights

6. Complimentary foliage size & texture

7. Long or overlapping seasonal interest

Over time, I have tried and tested many combinations and found my favourites. I’d like to share a few with you. 

A combination for sun or semi-shade featuring delicate colours, with umbels, bells, stars and spires. This will work best on moist but well drained soil and give you flowers from May to September. 

1.Geum 'Mai-Tai': Long flowering, peach and orange petals held aloft over a rosette of evergreen leaves.

2. Astrantia major 'Buckland': delicate pale pink pincushions. Interesting seedhead will create winter interest and feed the birds.

3. Camapnula pericifolia 'Telham Beauty': impressive lilac-blue bells.

4. Digitalis lutea: elegant spires of creamy pale yellow flowers, loved by bees. Top tip: most foxgloves are biennial, which means they will flower in their second year, then die off. In theory, they will self seed and start a cycle of new plants but can be hard to establish. Digitalis lutea, however, is a perennial foxglove, that will come back every year. See also Digitalis ferruginea and Digitalis parviflora.