Nature provides us with an ever changing colour palette throughout the year, where bedding plants bloom with the summer sunshine and bright green leaves fade to a burning orange as autumn approaches.

The human eye famously sees more shades of green than any other colour, meaning we’re naturally disposed to appreciate the intricate details of our garden spaces, even when we’re looking at the simplest of plants. As such, a well kept lawn, hedgerows and trees can all help to create a stunning space on their own.

But as summer approaches, you may feel inspired to add a broader spectrum of colour to your garden space. This could come in the form of new bedding plants or a lick of paint, where even the smallest details can transform your garden into a vibrant oasis.

Read on to find out more about how you can fill your garden with colour this summer.

Colourful Planting

One of the simplest ways to add colour to your garden is to rely on the natural world. Plants, shrubs, trees and flowers can all add vibrancy to an outdoor space, where careful selections and arrangements can help to keep your garden blooming for months to come.

We’ve compiled some straightforward tips and tricks to help you to curate a colourful landscape in your own backyard:

Colour Palettes

When adding vibrancy to your garden, it is important to think about your colour palette and what you’d like to achieve in your space. You may wish to select two or three theme colours that will complement each other across your flower beds. Alternatively, you might favour more naturalistic, organic planting, where wildflowers and scattered planting techniques can help you to create a relaxed display.

Vibrant Leaves & Greenery

Colour in the garden doesn’t just come from flowers, where you can also depend on leaf colour to enhance the appearance of your space. Leafy plants, shrubs and grasses can all add dimension to your flower beds, helping to retain a sense of vibrancy even in the winter months. Choose plants with deep red, cream or silvery leaves to break up seas of green, where these can be selected to complement your flowers.

Perennials & Annuals

If you’re considering a garden overhaul, it is important to understand the difference between perennials and annuals. Perennial plants return year after year, where these are ideal for creating a low maintenance and long lasting border.

In contrast, annuals will complete their life cycle in one growing season. The benefit of this is that they are easy to grow from seed and can be utilised to fill gaps in your border as the summer unfolds. Annuals can also be planted in pots to add some much needed summer colour to your space.

Colourful Stems & Bark

In addition to choosing greenery with colourful leaves, you can also deliberately select plants that feature vibrant stems and bark. Some small trees and shrubs come with beautiful dark woods with red and purple undertones, whilst other bedding plants are renowned for their attractive stems. These can be combined with contrasting green foliage to create a depthful, well structured flower bed.

Planting Patterns

Once you’ve chosen your bedding plants and your desired colour palette, you should then consider how your plants will be arranged. Gardening experts recommend that planting in triangles or drifts of plants helps to create natural looking groupings whilst still maintaining an aesthetically pleasing arrangement, where these can be positioned in groups of 3-5 plants. These shapes can then be layered and repeated across your garden to create a cohesive but relaxed feel.

Painted Features

Paint is your new best friend if you’re looking to add colour to your garden, where exterior paint products are specially designed to provide long lasting vibrancy even when exposed to the elements.

Consider how your exterior paint will complement your bedding plants, where you may want to draw on your summer flowers for colour inspiration. Painting multiple surfaces around the garden in the same shade can also help to bring different areas of your space together.

Timber surfaces in particular lend themselves to exterior paint, where you should make sure that these are properly primed and finished to ensure a long lasting colour.

Some elements that could be revamped with a lick of colour include:

• Walls – an exterior wall of your house or back walls in a tiered garden could benefit from a paint application, where this can create a vibrant backdrop for your planting efforts.
• Pots – old terracotta pots could take on a new lease of life with a fresh paint application, where these can be dotted throughout your garden to bring colour to every corner.
• Sheds – your shed could become the centrepiece of your garden if you choose an eye catching paint colour, helping to transform a practical storage space into a vibrant statement.
• Decking – timber decking can be decorated with specialist paints to create a long lasting, vibrant finish, where this could set the tone for your planting colour palette.
• Fences – wooden fencing can look a little drab, where a coat of paint could transform this practical barrier into a space enhancing architectural feature.

Additional Colour Enhancing Methods

Paints and planting are two key strategies for bringing colour into your garden. Beyond this, there are also numerous subtle ways to create a colourful backdrop for your greenery, often with the help of man made accessories.

Some of these methods include:

Gravel & Paving Stones

When you think of garden colour, gravel and paving stones may not be the first thing that comes to mind. But there are numerous products to choose from that can actually add vibrancy to your space. For instance, gravel comes in a variety of shades, including golden neutral tones and subtle pastels. Paving stones can also be chosen in white and cream, helping to brighten and enlarge your garden.

Garden Furnishings

Investing in garden furniture is another great way to enhance your space, where you can use these accessories to add a much needed pop of colour. If your decking or patio is a neutral shade, then choose chairs and tables in a bright tone that complements your bedding plants. Even wooden furniture can be brightened up with cushions, covers and blankets to make your outdoor space feel more inviting.

Vertical Planting

Often, the ground level of your garden can feel vibrant, whilst fences and exterior walls are left bare. You can counteract this by investing in vertical planting methods such as trellises and supports, which can encourage flowering plants and other bright blooms to extend up your barren surfaces. Installing well-packed hanging baskets can also help to add colour to every inch of your garden, or you could build your own vertical shelving planters in order to eradicate bare corners.

Lighting Options

You can also deliberately brighten your garden space with lighting installations. Beacon and pathway lights can be positioned to spotlight brightly coloured bedding plants, whilst strings of fairy lights can be installed to draw attention to painted fences and exterior walls. You may also wish to install coloured bulbs and lanterns to add some night time vibrancy to your garden, where these can be interspersed with natural lights to create an attractive contrast.

Hales Sawmills: Colourful Garden Accessories To Enhance Your Space

At Hales Sawmills, we supply everything you need to bring colour back into your garden this summer. Invest in your bedding plants with the help of our compost, fertilisers and plant food, where you can also spruce up your lawn with our range of specialist products.

Beyond this, we supply colourful aggregates such as golden gravel and moonstone, which can be used to brighten up every corner of your outdoor space. We also offer a selection of long lasting exterior paints, so you can transform your timber surfaces in an instant.

For a more drastic garden transformation, take a look at our supply of building materials and equipment, which includes Tobermore block paving, fencing, gates and sawn timber. Get in touch with our team today to find out more about our full product range.