As a UK young plant producer, we like to share colour and trends insight with our growers and retailers. Gathering information from across the sector and beyond, we’ve created four key colour trend groups for UK garden planting in 2020-21.
For each trend, we show a selection of products from our range. These demonstrate the kinds of plants we believe garden designers, landscapers, and gardeners at home will be using this year and next.
We’re already seeing the impact of the Pantone Colour of the Year 2020, Classic Blue announcement.
Blue Wave – Safe and dependable bringing peace and tranquillity to the garden
Based on the Pantone Colour of the Year 2020, Classic Blue, this dark, trusted colour provides a solid foundation for a timeless colour palette, with plant options that create a calm garden environment in this new era.
Eye-catching larger plants like perennial Slavia Victoria Blue or Meconopsis Lingholm, or the more electric, scented Corydalis Blue Heron, anchor and provide structure.
Build and add to this as Classic Blue goes with everything and can be paired with many colours offering real design versatility in the garden.
Pastels introduce softness whilst for a more modern garden style use bold colours like yellow. For a subtler garden style, small-to-medium plants like Campanula Carpatica Clips Deep Blue and Lobelis Star Deep Blue provide ideal accents in a broader colour scheme tying the whole garden landscape together.
Alternatively, garden heroes like Pansy Premier F1 Cool Blues Mix or Primrose Primus F1 Blue offer the opportunity to create a wave of strong colour. For more classic elegance, select contrasting white plants and add texture with foliage.
Urban Green – The new neutral for gardens everywhere
Green foliage and flowers that add colour and texture, this new neutral works anywhere. Idyllic country cottage gardens to contemporary urbanised balcony settings; this is a trend that reflects our greater awareness of sustainability, climate change and pure love for nature.
The obsession with perennials is set to continue with striking ornamental grass Hakonechloa Sunflare featuring cascading yellow-green leaves tinted with purple-red.
Likewise, the ruffled shiny acidic lime green foliage of Heuchera Lime Marmalade or the vibrant acid green of Heuchera Electric Lime are options for shady borders or brightening containers, both featuring slender stemmed white flowers.
Interesting green flower options include petunia Surfinia Lime. Its large, white blooms and lime-green blush are ideal for containers, hanging baskets, and ground cover. Another lime green option is vigorous Nicotiana Avalon F1 Lime.
For shady gardens, creeping Lysimachia Nummularia will create focal points to add the illusion of light whilst darker green Athyrium niponicum Pictum is one of the easiest and most rewarding hardy ferns. A distinctive tall fern option is Dryopteris Atrata.
For a more yellow green, the bright golden yellow trailing foliage of Helichrysum Gold adds structure and interest to hanging baskets and mixed plantings.
At Home – A familiar, romantic garden feel
Decidedly traditional, this trend is a mix of softer delicate shades with a few punchier colours added in. It creates familiarity and that sense of nostalgia, providing a relaxed and safe garden space; the equivalent of a comfortable, cosy interior.
Popular ornamentals such as Fleuroselect-approved novelty Primula Everlast, Viola Vibrant Pink Sunrise and Primrose Provence Mix in pretty pastel colours are suited to creating this cottage garden style in spring. Whilst for summer scented Nemesia Wisley Vanilla or delicate bicolour new Lady Penelope will also be good plant options.
Other garden favourites that suit the trend include thrifts like Armeria Maritima Morning Star White.
Complementing this look and great for planting in hanging baskets, troughs and pots are brightly coloured Geranium Ivy Leaf PAC® Amelit and Petunia Surfinia Sky Blue/Rose Vein, which will cascade over the edge to create stunning displays.
Living Colour – Move over minimalism, bright pops of garden colour are back
This trend invites the young, the brave and the bold to introduce plenty of vibrant colour into their garden design, especially when it comes to pots and baskets in small space and balcony living situations.
Good for pot sales, Dahlia Labella® Grande Red features the most wonderful double flowers or for a tall, dark leaf option select Dahlia Moonfire. An alternative pot choice is jewel-like Osteospermum Sunny Gala, which, with its large flowers offers good outdoor performance.
For a flowering time uniformity, ensuring all are ready to flower at the same time, Viola Vibrante Ruby Gold works this trend well.
A stunning trailing basket option is Begonia Illumination F1 Apricot or for a mounded semi-trailing habit, all-weather petunia BeautiCal™ Cinnamon offers a profusion of large flowers.
Perennial pops of colour include Penstemon Blackbird, which boasts clusters of dark purple, trumpet-shaped blooms held on strong stems as well as one of the earliest flowering perennials, the striking Aubrieta F1 Audrey Purple Shades.
Click here to see all products that feature in our colour trend 2020-21 range.