Colourful gardens are not hard to achieve but here are a few hints and tips to help you with various aspects of planning and using colour.

Tips and Hints of Colourful Tints

• Light creates colour so think about the Sun’s effect in the morning, around mid day and in the evening. It has a cooler temperature and helps yellows and pastle colours early, can burn out soft colours in the full glare but adds warm tones later in the afternoon. Look at some old photographs to see what I mean.
• Throw your own light into dull corners by painting trellis and furniture white. Light coloured bricks, paving and gravel can also make a huge difference.
• Small gardens appear larger if you place soft colours furthest away with vivid colours nearest. For the appearance of width put dark blue at the back and pastels at the front.
• Vivid colours make pastel colours seem washed out so separate them with the neutrality of white flowers.
• Soften large areas of blue with its complementary colour orange. A complementary colour is directly opposite in a colour wheel. So red and green work well.
• Cream, white and mauve can have a peaceful tranquil effect.
• It is easy to forget the colour of a flower so tie a piece of coloured nylon yarn to the plant. Then when you move it or plant a companion you know what you will get.
• Green is the predominant colour in the garden and has more shades than any other colour. Mix variegated leaves and yellow leaved plants for effect.

Read also Purple coloured flowers on Gardeners Tips
This extract is from Red and Green in the Garden
Colour is classified in three ways.
1. Hue- This is the kind of colour and whether it is intense or greyed
2. Brightness – is the total light reflected that provides the tone or luminosity. It is how the eye perceives light to dark colours.
3. Saturation – Is intensity or pureness. spectral colours are the maximum intensity the eye can appreciate. Mixed with any other colour reduces saturation.