Pink, a Tint of Red

Plate 20a. Pink Phlox with Good Companions

1. Phlox Caroline Vandenburg	5. Eryngium amethystinum
2. Phlox Columbia	6. Zinnia Canary Gem
3. Phlox Mary Louise	7. Snapdragon Daintiness
4. Phlox Daily Sketch

Here is a "color" that is not a primary, as is sometimes supposed, but a tint of red that varies according to the amount of white it contains. There are deep strong pinks (rose), or pale weak ones. This popular color is not strong enough to be used alone in a garden. It washes out under sunlight. During the period of monochromatic schemes, the pink garden was rarely a success because a dark green background of foliage, a lighter yellow-green foreground of grass, and the changing sky depleted this tint of weak chroma. Yet pink in all its variations appeals to the hybridizer, so there is a wealth of pink flowers, and these are important to succession. (Plate 20a.)

Pink with white appears stronger. Some very clear pinks can be used with cold lavender (a tint of blue-violet), and with pale yellow, but pinks should not be used with strong blues. The most pleasing combinations result when colors of the same chroma are used together, thus pink goes with tints better than with median hues or shades.

Plate 20b. Composition with Pink as Dominant Color

1. Arabis alpina	7. Dianthus barbatus Newport Pink
2. Myosotis alpestris	8. Phlox Columbia
3. Tulip Clara Butt	9. Phlox Pinkette
4. Tulip Clematis	10. Althea rosea
5. Paeonia Albert Crousse	11. Delphinium Sir Galahad Series
6. Iris germanica China Maid

Contents

• Color Accent - Color accent groups along a border produce movement, rhythm, and sequence. They carry the eye along to the climactic point.
• Color Placement - Color, for any given season, should never be concentrated in any one bed or border to the exclusion of others.
• Color Schemes - Since we discourage the use of restrictive and complex color schemes, we will offer other reasonable solutions. The two methods that follow have been found in actual practice to produce satisfactory gardens.
• Blue - Analogous harmonies based on blue are easy to arrange because dark and light blues provide sufficient contrast. Blue, contrasted with yellow or orange of the same chroma, is strong and bold, but such combinations must be used sparingly.
• Violet, Purple, and Magenta - These hues lie between blue and red and are most difficult to use effectively. Long considered symbols of loyalty, they bring dignity to the garden.
• Red, and Its Place - Red, and the closely associated hues of crimson, scarlet, and red-orange can be important in a garden composition. Too often they are omitted altogether, but they are a means of securing greater distinction and a desirable warmth.
• Pink, a Tint of Red - Here is a color that is not a primary, as is sometimes supposed, but a tint of red that varies according to the amount of white it contains. There are deep strong pinks (rose), or pale weak ones.
• Orange, Warm and Luminous - Orange imparts even more brilliance and warmth to borders than red and closely related scarlet. Orange is one of the vital hues.
• Yellow for Light and Life - Yellow and white are always pleasing together and there is a fresh simplicity in their use. Another strong contrast may be had from strong yellow with strong blue, or even with difficult purple.
• White, the Fifth Primary - You might think white would be the simplest of colors to use in the garden, yet this is not the case. White, improperly placed, or in poor proportion causes unsatisfactory compositions.
• Green, the Sixth Primary - The urge for riots of color in all parts of the garden at all times makes us overlook green. Such neglect not only impairs the true effectiveness of color compositions, but also robs the garden of more permanent beauty.
• Gray and Silvery Foliage - Gray-foliaged plants are more effective with light-tinted flowers, soft lavenders, mauve, pale yellow, buff, and soft pinks. But they are also good with strong colors.
• Color in the Garden - Color should be used to provide accent and emphasis, balance, repetition and rhythm, sequence, and climax. These are more helpful in the development of a pleasing garden than all the subtle, close, color harmonies that ever were attempted.

See Also

• Next Page: Orange, Warm and Luminous
• Return from Pink, a Tint of Red to: Landscape-Guide Home

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