This is the perfect planter for bringing a shady spot to life. Its simple textured pattern combined with the softening of moss gives it a patina of age that particularly suits this cool combination of shady planting. When I found it, it was already home to a native fern, which was my starting point for this mix of shade-tolerant perennials and foliage, to which I’ve added dashes of pastel pink from Anemone x hybrida ‘Königin Charlotte’ and Tricyrtis Pink Freckles (= ‘Innotripf’).
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How to achieve the look
Container and composition
I’d had my eye on this planter for quite a while before I decided to bring it into use. It was sitting in a corner of the garden at Water Lane, and it had obtained a softening of moss. When I went over to investigate, I discovered it had the added bonus of a large native fern (probably Dryopteris dilatata) already growing in it. The container needed no sprucing up; already with a helpful layer of moss and ferns, it just needed that gentle intervention that underlines all of my garden design.
As a companion to the existing fern, I brought in a Japanese painted fern. The silver sheen of its fronds suggested the anemone, which has pretty, vine-like, dark-green leaves that add to the foliage textures, but also brings a touch of colour without too much glamour. The pastel pinks work perfectly with the other worldly purple-splattered flowers of Tricyrtis Pink Freckles (= ‘Innotripf’), while a small hosta brings solidity to the otherwise-ethereal forms in this planting combination.
Cultivation and care
Given a moist, peat-free, loam-based compost this is a combination that can largely be left to its own devices. It needs minimal care aside from deadheading and cutting back once the perennials have gone over. At this stage, you could add a planting of dwarf daffodils and other small spring bulbs as a soft and delicate layer before the perennials appear again in summer.
Plants
Clockwise from left
Tricyrtis Pink Freckles (= ‘Innotripf’)
A compact Tricyrtis formosana cultivar with pink flowers stained white and spotted with burgundy. July – October. Height and spread: 35cm x 40cm. RHS H6, USDA 4a-9b†.
Anemone x hybrida ‘Königin Charlotte’
Masses of large, rich rose-pink flowers on tall, wiry stems. August – October. 1.5m x 60cm. AGM*. RHS H7, USDA 5a-8b.
Hosta ‘Hydon Sunset’
Heart-shaped foliage starts golden green in spring, slowly becoming a fresher green. Purple flowers in midsummer. 60cm x 60cm. RHS H7, USDA 3a-8b.
Athyrium niponicum var. pictum ‘Apple Court’
A form of deciduous Japanese painted fern with silvery grey-green fronds and purple midribs. 35cm x 1m. RHS H5 USDA 5a-8b.
Dryopteris dilatata
Robust, semi-evergreen, native fern with dark-green, toothed fronds. 1.5m x 1m. AGM. RHS H6, USDA 5a-9b.
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