People, Isn't it time to give peach a chance?

 
Eschscholzia  californica 'Apricot Chiffon'

I was lucky to spend a few hours at Annie’s Annuals Spring party on Saturday, where in addition to enjoying the music, juggling and all around party atmosphere, I also had a chance to do some plant browsing with fellow designer Rebecca Sweet.  Towards the end of our visit, Rebecca noticed a display of the beautiful California poppies pictured at the top of this post and said “oh look – peach! Isn’t that the color you’re always going on about?”

Rather than take offense at her off-hand dismissal of my favorite accent color, I realized there was no better place than Annie’s to prove my belief that peach is THE most versatile flower color in the garden. So I surreptitiously snapped off a bloom (sorry Annie!) and with Rebecca wielding the camera, set off to prove it.

 Setting off the fabulous silver foliage of Salvia argentea 'Silver Sage'

 

And here next to the burgundy foliage of Dianthus nigrescens 'Sooty'

 

 Holding its own with a chartreuse Euphorbia bract

 

 

Paired with blue Delphiniums (okay, okay a no-brainer, and actually not my favorite combo. A little gaudy maybe?)

 

But with the subtle purple-blue blooms and grey-green foliage of Cerinthe...true love!

 

Understated yellow highlights on the petals mean it even works with yellow! It's good with red as well, but the photo came out a bit blurry.   This last photo is the one that will really amaze you...

 

Can you believe it even works with pink?

 
Unless Rebecca took a stab before she sent them, none of the photos have been photoshopped, including the one at the top of the post provided by Elayne at Annie's.  Clicking to enlarge the photos for a close-up view lets you see how the chameleon-like peach colored petals seem to echo whatever they are paired with. (ignore any dirt under the fingernails - I was handling a lot of plants that day.)  And attention container gardeners! I'm talking to you too! Peach blooms are great to pull together a complex arrangement.

So what do you think? Have I convinced you to try a little peach in your garden?

Top photo courtesy of Annie's Annuals

All other photos courtesy of Rebecca Sweet

Hand modeling courtesy of me

 

 

Comments

[Mjausson]

Amazing how good it looks with the silver leaves. Really like it with the Cerinthe too.

Could another name for Plantius unknownium be Dianthus barbatus "Sooty"?

Agree about the silver. I also love it with the red foliage, which thanks to you I know know is Dianthus 'Sooty'!

[Rebecca Sweet]

Wow - you most certainly proved that yes, peach does in fact go with EVERYTHING! I'm now officially a peach-convert and can't wait to attack some new designs with a new 'eye'....and I didn't re-touch any of the photos, either!

It's funny, because that last photo is really great and I was thinking it might actually be the one color that peach doesn't work with...how wrong I was!

Peach is the color of 2010!!!

Yay, a convert! I agree about the pink, I was surprised it looked as nice as it did. Not sure that would be as true for a flower that was solidly peach colored, but when the petals have that subtle stripes of pink and pale yellow the plant becomes much more versatile. For a summer bloomer, they also carry some lovely peach colored snapdragons, although they won't overwinter reliably.

[elayne takemoto]

turquoise better watch its back!!

Turquoise? All sizzle and no steak. Peach is the real deal!

[the Inadvertent Farmer]

Gaudy is good...especially when a delphinium is involved! Kim

True, delphiniums do kind of smack you in the face with their beauty...not always a bad thing!

[gittan]

Yeas it is! I've desided to make a peach coloured bed in my garden where most flowers supposted to be peach and orange. I hope I'll be abel to find a lot of nice plants to put there this season / gittan

I'm sure you'll be able to find some peach plants you love. There are a lot more cultivars than there used to be.

[Genevieve]

I'm particularly taken with the silver foliage and peach. And OMG, can I just say that Escholzia is amazing? I grew it in a client's garden last year to great success.

Isn't it gorgeous? It wasn't labeled, and it was so glamorous looking compared to the plain Janeness of a typical orange poppy that I didn't even realize that's what it was! Nice to hear it did well for you - I'm definitely going to try it in some gardens.

[Fern @ Life on the Balcony]

Oooh, I think it looks prettiest with the Cerinthe, but I'm a little obsessed with that plant at the moment.

Cerinthe was one of the plants I bought while I was there, even though I don't have a spot for it. But I'm doing a lot of black pots for a client, and think I can convince her to add one more. I think I like this particular cultivar because the colors seem so elegant.

[Matt]

Well done Susan. Thanks for the inspiration.

Thanks Matt!

[DaffodilPlanter]

"Today's episode of Blue Planet Gardening is brought to you by the color peach."

Lovely and helpful, thanks Susan!

Witty as always, Daffodil! Glad you enjoyed it.

[annie]

snappy with magenta too! especially if you have a foil like the Dianthus b. 'Sooty'
(Plantius unknownium ) or the Salvia argenteum .

Yes, agree about magenta - although it's hard to find reliably hardy magenta flowers.

I'm hoping the fact that you stopped by means I won't be getting a bill for vandalizing plants at your nursery :-)

[aliceadams]

Nice ghoulish article … very fitting for the season and impressively damn interesting.

green world

[Catherine]

You have definitely convinced me. I don't think I have any peach and I don't know that I've ever even paid attention to it before. Now I have the urge to go plant shopping! :)

I've inspired you to go plant shopping? Then my job here is officially done.

[Stevie]

I wouldn't have given it a chance....BUT now that you've shown me the err in my ways - how can I resist?? I love it with the blues!

Kinda breathes new life into the classic combo of purple and yellow or blue and orange, doesn't it?

[VW]

I was just looking at peach hyacinths today, thinking how much better they look with periwinkle-colored flowers than pale pink.
Your photos make a strong case for more peach in the garden. Good job making your point.
And those Apricot Chiffon poppies definitely caught my eye in Annie's catalog. Those and the Rose Chiffon - all mixed together with periwinkle flowers, they were to die for!
Funny how peach isn't so far away on the color wheel from the dreaded salmon that you dislike. I think I've seen the color (did I already mention this in a comment?) - in that 'Major Wheeler' honeysuckle I keep seeing in catalogs. It's not soft and shaded, just a hard, strong, dark salmon.

VW, you have got to stop being so efficient at remembering everything that I say! I do dislike salmon, but didn't realize I'd mentioned it on my blog. Still, a garden I'm just finishing where the client insisted on it is starting to change my mind.

Those poppies are every bit as spectacular in person as they are in the photos. Plus I learned at the native plants lecture I attended yesterday that if you sheer them back after their first bloom, they'll repeat later in the season. I'm going to use them in some gardens for sure!

[Pam/Digging]

I nearly blew past your post when I saw the title, thinking you were pushing peach trees! Don't need a peach tree, but now I'm thinking I may need some peach flowers. It really DOES look good with everything.

LOL, it never occurred to me someone might think I was writing about fruit trees! Glad you read far enough to hit the real topic.

[Jim/ArtofGardening.org]

Great headline. Good side-by-side comparisons -- not sold on the pink-peach combo though. The peach-chartreuse looks surprisingly nice -- not a combo I would ave imagined.

A great part shade combo if you don't mind using annuals/tender perennials is helichryssum 'Limelight', coleus, and a soft peachy-pink begonia (not sure there are named cultivars for that). The helichryssum is a perennial here and while it's technically a full sun plant, like a lot of plants with chartreuse leaves, I find it gets it's best color in part shade.

[Rob(ourfrenchgarden)]

Hi Susan

I like it best with cerinthe, the delphiniums blue is too solid.

It's funny, nature doesn't have a colour wheel so why shouldn't it go with pink. For me, that's when form becomes the issue.

That said, I'm not wearing yellow strides with a pink shirt, OK?

I love the cerinthe. In fact I bought some at Annie's, even though I don't have anywhere to put it.

P.S. I thought you dapper European-types could pull of any sort of fashion statement!

[Jean]

Yes, you just may have convinced me. Especially with that pink/peach combo. I wouldn't thought that would have been a tricky one, but it works. Thanks for the inspiration!

Rebecca and I were surprised too when we saw it. We thought we'd get a fail on that one for sure. Glad I inspired you - no time like spring to consider branching out into new plant territory.

[Remote Gardener]

All we are saying is give peach a chance. :) Love it... How about a purple or black tomato tossed in there for fun?

Black and peach are MAGICAL together! I actually love mixing perennials and edibles, I just may give your crazy idea a try...

[Michelle D]

Love the color peach, there is something soothing about it.
In my own garden, whose color is predominately orange, peach offers the viewer a little bit of calm amongst the vibrance of the 'in your face orange'.
The only time I have a hard time with a peach colored plant is when it fades to pink.
NOT a fan of pink.

Poor, disrespected pink! You're not the first designer to express their dislike. Personally, I'm a fan - but no surprised there, my business logo is black and pink.

[Alice Joyce]

Give 'peach' a chance? Okey doke, Susan, you got me with that line!
I love finding reasons to smile, or even laugh (imagine!) out loud when I make time to read my favorite blogs.
Allow me to report that for the first time, my Cerinthe are spectacular this year. I only wish I had the right conditions for that gorgeous California poppy!!
p.s. what's the latest news (have I missed it) with your film-making efforts?

[lostlandscape (James)]

I second the peach love, but I will say the combo with the delphinium is a little close for comfort to my unfavorite orange and blue combo. Otherwise it's a color that really plays well with others, as is a warm ivory, which is one of my favorite connective colors. I like how your eye is pulled to the more muted and less saturated colors. Really restful without being bland.

I agree. You'd think the straight up complementary colors would be the obvious success story, but it felt a bit garish to me as well. A combo that was surprisingly lovely yet I don't think really came through in the photos was with the soft yellow. While I wouldn't combine those two exclusively, it raised my comfort level at putting them in the same composition.

Interesting about the warm ivory. I've never thought about that as a garden color. Do you have any specific plant examples I could check out?

[Town Mouse]

I wonder whether we think this color works with most other colors because it's so close to skin. I mean, people wear all kinds of colors, or should...

Regardless, yes, you've convinced me. Too bad that anything but orange Cal poppies are so hard to grow.

You have a point, and what's worse, the California poppies are generally TOO successful!

[Raised garden beds]

Those flowers are breathtaking. It's really amazing how flowers could be very beautiful.