Hot or Cool? Which colours make your garden sing?

Creating Stunning Hot & Cool Colour Perennial Borders

Perennials Available at £7.99 for 3L pots:

Whether you want to energise your garden with bold, fiery hues or create a calming retreat with soft pastels, mixing perennials by colour and form is a winning strategy. Here’s a guide to some of the best perennials to build hot and cool colour borders, with notes on each plant’s colour palette and growing habits.

🔥 Hot Colour Border Plants

Bright reds, oranges, yellows, hot pinks, and deep purples create warmth and drama. These plants thrive in full sun and bring life to the back or middle of borders:

• Achillea millefolium ‘Vintage Red’
  Hot red-orange clusters, flat-topped flowers, long flowering, drought tolerant.

• Penstemon ‘Harlequin Pink’
  Vibrant bright pink tubular flowers, excellent for attracting hummingbirds and bees.

• Echinacea
  Classic daisy-like flowers in rich pinks and purples; strong, upright stems.

• Gaillardia (Blanket Flower)
  Striking red and yellow daisy-like flowers, heat and drought tolerant, blooms all summer.

• Verbena bonariensis ‘Buenos Aires’ (Tall)
  Lavender-purple airy flower clusters, tall stems, great for the back of borders, pollinator magnet.

❄️ Cool Colour Border Plants

Soft pastels, whites, blues, lavenders, mauves, and soft pinks create a relaxing, elegant vibe. These plants also do well in sun but can soften bright hot colours in mixed borders:

• Achillea millefolium ‘Vintage White’
  Soft flat clusters, complements stronger hues well, long flowering period.

• Verbena bonariensis ‘Santos Purple’ (Dwarf)
  Deep purple compact flowers, excellent for mid-border planting and pollinators.

• Campanula
  Bell-shaped blue flowers, adds delicate structure and gentle colour.

• Veronica ‘Rose’ & ‘Blue’
  Spiky flowers, neat and tidy, in pretty pink or blue tones, great for layering heights.

• Scabiosa ‘Mariposa Blue’
  Soft blue pincushion blooms, lovely for texture and butterfly attraction.

• Liatris
  Tall purple spikes, great vertical accent, blooms late summer into autumn.

• Leucanthemum (Shasta Daisy)
  Classic white daisy with yellow centres, cheerful and timeless.

• Coreopsis
  Usually bright yellow, low maintenance and long flowering; a tender perennial.

Additional Notes

• Verbena bonariensis works beautifully in both hot and cool colour schemes, making it a versatile choice to bridge areas.

• Most of these plants prefer full sun and well-drained soil.

• Consider heights when planting: Liatris and Verbena Buenos Aires for the back, Echinacea and Gaillardia mid-height, and Campanula or Veronica for mid to front borders.

Take a look at our gallery and find your favourites - this list is not exhaustive!

This list provides a great starting point for anyone wanting to design herbaceous borders with eye-catching colour schemes, layered heights, and plants that attract pollinators and brighten outdoor spaces.