Garden Design with Perennials
Good perennial garden design borrows a few core principles from landscape design more broadly — repetition, contrast, and flow — applied specifically to plants that change dramatically through the seasons.
Repetition Creates Cohesion
Repeating the same plant or color at intervals throughout a bed ties a design together visually, even when many different species are used. Without repetition, a perennial bed can start to look like a random collection rather than a considered design.
Contrasting leaf textures and shapes — broad hosta leaves against fine ornamental grass, for instance — add visual interest even when nothing is in bloom.
Curved bed lines generally read as more natural and relaxed than straight edges, and are easier to maintain with a string trimmer than tight inside corners.
Designing for the Whole Year
A few evergreen shrubs or ornamental grasses left standing through winter give a perennial bed year-round structure, rather than disappearing entirely once the growing season ends.
