it is always fun to see throughout the season which plants work well together and complement each other . Sometimes the combinations are ideas that occur to me when I should be sleeping on a late January night. Sometimes, they are a variation of something I saw in a book or magazine. More often than not, the are serendipitous pairings formed by self- seeding or random placement. I try to take note of these chance happenings especially  so I can repeat them in the future …. and take credit for the creativity behind them 😉

Anyway, here are a few that are happening right now.

Sedum tel.rupestre ‘Hab Gray’ and mandevilla. I love how the blush tone in the sedum leaves gets magnified by the intense red of the mandevilla. These are both planted in containers that just happen to be placed next to one another. Happy accident

This area of the garden has a lot going on. The black eyed susans, seedheads of penstemon’Husker Red’, butterfly bush, clematis seedheads, and in the very back angelica gigas. (Planned by me)

On to a more simple combo. the blushing blooms of hydrangea paniculata ‘Limelight’ and summersweet clethra alnifolia ‘Ruby Spice’   well thought out if I do say so myself!

More simple stuff, platycodon or balloon flower at the feet of a butterfly bush….can’t remember if I placed them there or they seeded?

all these shades of greens and blue greens surrounding the view into a stand of heleniums

planned! Go me!acidanthera  or peacock orchids and thunbergia alata or climbing balck eyed susan vine growing into a spring blooming  bridal wreath spirea….another combo I though of instead of sleeping 

a long blooming clematis called ‘Roguchi’ and golden chamaecyparis…most definitely planned, I LOVE these two colors playing off each other

sedum ‘Garnet Brocade’ tumbling over  into a blue bird’s nest spruce…..more the hand of mother nature than mine

and an aeonium called ‘Kiwi’ and the foliage of a  potted rosemary. I didn’t plan this, just paced them together because it looked good and as they have grown onto each other it looks even better.by the end of each year it is nice to have a whole folder of images that capture what worked ( and what didn’t)  so when  those long winter nights arrive there is  plenty  dream about!