Show #13/5513. A Garden With A Rich Horticultural Tradition

Design Fundamentals for Containers

EVERY GREAT CONTAINER COMBINATION HAS CERTAIN DESIGN FUNDAMENTALS that bring the whole container together in a unified and cohesive way. John talks briefly about the type elements and design fundamentals that he utilizes in container design. They view one container that exhibits 3 basic elements. A pillar, or upright plant, a filler, which are the plants in the center and are mounding in form and then a trailing plant that John refers to as a spiller. So they have a pillar, a filler and a spiller. The taller element is the Sambucus nigra 'Eva,' Sambucus black lace, in the center are several plants but is anchored by Solenostemon x 'Glennis' Coleus. As well they have a Ageratum houstonianum, some Salvia divinorum, some Euphorbia 'Diamond Frost' which is a plant John loves. And then falling out the bottom is Scirpus cernuus (Isolepis cernua) Fiber Optic Grass and Trachelospermum jasminoides 'Tricolor.' It all works well together, a lot of texture change. When one goes from grass texture to cut leaf texture it adds a lot of depth and a lot of texture as well as color to this combination.